Fears of Tory rebellion send pound plummeting

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analyst at CMC Markets UK, said the rising political uncertainty was the talk of the City.

He added: “Prime Minister May is still secure in her position, and the Tory rebels would need to round up more signatures before they could actually push for this. Nonetheless, the very fact that members of her own party are looking to oust her severely weakens her position.”

However, Mr Madden noted that “in a roundabout way” Mrs May’s political troubles were helping the FTSE 100, which ended down only 0.24%, or 17.81 points, at 7,415.18.

He said: “The remainder of Europe is firmly in the red, but the weakness in sterling has cushioned the fall in the British index. Continental Europe is being hit by the sell-off that began last Thursday. The shock sell-off in Japan in the latter half of last week is still being felt around the world.”

Across Europe, the French Cac 40 was down 0.73% while the German Dax fell 0.4%.

Brent crude prices were down 0.6% at $63.24, as traders remained uncertain about the future of global supply levels, which have yet to recover from a multi-year glut.

In UK stocks, fell 3.3p to 133.6p despite posting a 3% rise in net revenue for the four months to October 29, aided by a 12% rise in its digital business which offset a drop in takings at betting shops. Revenues at the shops fell 1% as likefor-like revenue from betting machines came in flat.

shares were nearly flat, down just 0.1p at 192.8p, having reported a dip in its order book at 8,751 homes and £2.2 billion for the second half of its 2017 financial year, down from 8,981 and £2.3 billion over the same period last year. But the housebuilder struck a positive note, saying the UK housing market was “positive” during the period.

plunged 297p to 1,230p after the defence firm warned over profits. It said weaker financial results came following the Ministry of Defence “pausing, cancelling or delaying numerous programmes”.

The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were up 83p to 4,947p; up 60p to 4,930p; up 21p to 2,580.5p; and

B shares, up 20p to 2,477.5p. The biggest fallers were down 59.5p to

down 753p;

115p to 2,470p; down 118p to 2,800p; and

down 19p to 537p.

halved its dividend and cut its profit forecast while unveiling a plan that narrowed its focus on aviation, power and healthcare.

Shares of the industrial conglomerate fell 7.2 per cent to $19.02 after touching a more than five-year low of $18.75.

Kim Forrest, equity research analyst at Fort Pitt Capital Group in Pittsburgh, said: “People who were in GE for their dividend may be looking for a better place to put their money.”

Utilities and consumer staples rank among the sectors with the highest dividend yield on the S&P 500. They were also the largest percentage winning sectors yesterday. The Dow rose 17.49 points, or 0.07 per cent, to 23,439.7, the S&P 500 gained 2.54 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 2,584.84 and the Nasdaq added 6.66 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 6,757.60.

Toymaker jumped 20.7 per cent to $17.64 after a report that rival Hasbro made an approach to acquire the company. Hasbro rose 5.9 per cent to $96.84.

gained 3 per cent to $66.49 after the chipmaker rejected rival Broadcom’s $103 billion takeover bid, saying the offer “dramatically” undervalued the company.

shares climbed 2 per cent to $75.59 after the meat processor said low prices for livestock feed will help boost results again next year. Shares touched their highest since September 2016.