Downbeat news on Rentokil, BA, holds back FTSE

Downbeat broker notes on two of London’s top companies left the FTSE 100 Index threatening to fall below the key 5300 mark today.

Pest control group Rentokil Initial lost around 2% of its market value, off 3.5p to 163p, after one analyst said its interim results this week were unlikely to show any trading improvement.