Footsie ends lower again as miners slump

The FTSE 100 suffered another day of sizeable falls after commodities stocks took a hammering amid fears of a global slowdown.

The index closed down 44.9 points at 7,077.64, and it also underperformed its continental counterparts,

David Madden, market analyst at CMC Markets said: “The London market has a relatively large exposure to energy as well as mining stocks, so the concerns about a global slowdown are hitting the FTSE 100 extra hard.”

Shares in Ted Baker fell sharply after it swung to a first-half loss of £23 million blaming “very difficult trading conditions”. It also warned that revenue could drop below last year’s if the trading environment doesn’t improve. Shares closed down 40 per cent at 555p. Perth-based public transport group Stagecoach closed up 1.33p at 133p after issuing a fairly positive trading update.

The group said that like-for-like revenue growth at its UK regional bus operations rose slightly in the 14 weeks to mid-september and maintained its full-year outlook.

Shares in tobacco and vaping firm Imperial Brands closed up 10p at 1,840p after chief executive Alison Cooper announced plans to stand down after nine years in the role and two decades with the tobacco giant. She will leave after a successor is appointed.

It comes amid a wave of chief executive departures, with Tesco boss Dave Lewis revealing on Wednesday he will step down next summer on the same day that City heavyweight Martin Gilbert announced he will leave Standard Life Aberdeen.