FTSE dips as investors take profits

Profit taking caused the FTSE 100 to fall during trading on the stock market this morning.

According to Reuters, the index declined as investors opted to cash in on the gains that had been recorded in previous sessions, Reuters reports.

As a result the index was 9.55 points lower at 09:06 GMT, with financial stocks among the biggest fallers.

HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group, Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays and Standard Chartered were all down by as much as 2.1 per cent.

’As we edge closer to the holiday period, volumes will start to thin and this means that any profit taking could hinder index advances,’ observed Joshua Raymond of City Index.

British Airways recorded the largest slide, dipping 2.5 per cent as news staff are to stage industrial action worried investors.

However, there were gains for some defensive stocks, notably drinks producers Diageo and SABMiller, as well as Imperial Tobacco and British American Tobacco.ADNFCR-2318-ID-19514552-ADNFCR