- FTSE 100 down 1.1% to 6,664
- Gold up 0.4% to $1,108.95
- £/$ – 1.5572
Markets around the world fell back yesterday as investors reacted to China’s devaluation of its currency. The FTSE 100 lost 1.1% to close at 6,664.
Miners were the worst hit. Glencore was the biggest faller of the day with a7.3% slide, while BHP Billiton lost 5%, and Anglo American fell 4.2%.
In Europe’s markets on Friday, the Paris CAC 40 fell 1.9% to 5,099, and the German Xetra Dax was 2.7% lower at 11,293.
In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.2% to 17,402, the S&P 500 lost 1% to 2,084, and the Nasdaq Composite slid 1.3% to 5,036.
Overnight in Japan, the Nikkei 225 shed 1.6% to 20,392, and the broader Topix index fell 1.3% to 1,665. And in China, the CSI 300 lost 1.2% to 4,016, and the Shanghai Composite fell 1.1% to 3,886.
Brent spot was trading at $48.84 early today, and in New York, crude oil was at $42.86. Spot gold was trading at $1,117 an ounce, silver was at $15.27 and platinum was at $990.
In the forex markets this morning, sterling was trading against the US dollar at 1.5586 and against the euro at 1.4033. The dollar was trading at 0.9003 against the euro and 124.60 against the Japanese yen.
And in the UK, Balfour Beatty posted a big fall in earnings in the first half of the year. The construction and infrastructure firm, which has issued seven profits warnings in the last three years, lost £150m in the six months to 26 June, compared with a loss of £58m for the same period last year.