By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- The U.K.'s FTSE 100 fell Thursday,
registering a more than 10% drop from its 2014 high, as part of a
flurry of selling that's hit equity markets worldwide.
The FTSE 100 was down 1.1% in afternoon trade in a volatile
session which saw the index open higher then drop by as much as
2.2%. It managed to come off intraday lows as trading got underway
in the U.S., though the S&P 500 (SPX) and the Dow Jones
Industrial Average (DJI) each slumped at the open.
The FTSE 100 fell 2.8% on Wednesday, the fall stoked by
persistent worries about slowing global growth. At its lowest point
on Thursday, the FTSE 100 marked an 11.7% decline from its high
this year, reached in May.
The oil and gas group on Thursday fell 1.1% as oil futures
(CLX4) fell below $81 a barrel. Tullow Oil shares gave up 3.3%,
Royal Dutch Shell PLC slumped 2.6%, and BP PLC fell 0.5%.
Shire PLC was the worst price-performer for a second straight
session, losing 9.5%. The board of U.S. drug maker AbbVie Inc.
(ABBV) late Wednesday pulled its recommendation to buy the British
biopharmaceuticals maker. AbbVie on Wednesday said it is
re-evaluating its planned takeover of Shire because new tax rules
from the U.S. Treasury Department make the deal less
attractive.
Tesco PLC was down 0.9% after Warren Buffett's Berkshire
Hathaway (BRKA) reduced its holdings of the supermarket chain,
according to a filing released on Thursday. Berkshire Hathaway now
owns less than 3% of Tesco, down from around 4%, which was the
fourth largest stake in the company.
The sale comes after Tesco revealed in September that it
overstated its first-half profit forecast by 250 million pounds
($400 million). Buffett has since said he made a "huge mistake" by
investing in the company.
Holding to gains were shares of Antofagasta PLC . They rose 1.3%
after UBS raised its rating on the copper miner to neutral from
sell. Engineering group GKN PLC was upgraded to outperform from
neutral at Exane BNP Paribas. Its shares were up 2.2%.
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