FTSE shares close down
FTSE 100 shares slipped back Monday as a wobble in the recovery of the US industrial sector tempered investor confidence.
US industrial production inched up 0.1 percent in February, grinding to a near-halt amid severe snow storms that crippled large parts of the East Coast.
London's index shed 0.57 percent to finish at 5,593.35 points.
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) was the most traded stock, seeing 151 million units change hands, followed by Lloyds Banking Group (LBG) , which saw 148 million shares switch owners.
The day's top performer was Centrica, which added 4.7 pence -- or 1.62 percent -- to finish at 294.7, followed by Shire, which added 17 pence -- or 1.17 percent -- to stand at 1466.
Eurasian was the worst performer, dropping 40 pence -- or 3.41 percent -- to close at 1133, followed by Wolseley which shed 56 pence -- or 3.34 percent -- to finish at 1620.
Meanwhile, sterling slumped against both the dollar and the euro.
At 17:00, the pound was trading at 1.5036 dollars, down from 1.5181 at the same time on Friday, while the currency stood at 1.1007 euros, down from 1.1035 over the same period.
Copyright 2010  AFP European Edition
