FTSE 100 falls 1.5%

The FTSE 100 fell 1.5 per cent in early trading – as a brief fillip was lost.

The Federal Reserve's record interest rate cut failed to enliven traders eyeing their Christmas break and the index stood at 4,247.39 at 9:22 GMT- a fall of 1.43 per cent or 61.77 points.

Energy services firm Wood Group was down 9.25 per cent, insurer Admiral Group dropped 6.23 per cent, and HSBC Holding slid 5.84 per cent.

AMEC fell 5.13 per cent and Stagecoach slipped 5.00 per cent.

However, amid the festive gloom, some shares managed to buck the trend – as investors looked for a Yuletide safe haven for their cash.

Miner silver Fresnillo rose 3.81 per cent, and property giant Hammerson gained 2.49 per cent. Invensys rose 2.24 per cent.

Last night in New York, the Dow was up 4.20 per cent – spurred by the stateside cut in interest rates, while Chicago's S&P 500 gained 5.14 per cent.

However, Asia was far less gung-ho about the rate cut – with traders seeing a cut in the cost of borrowing more of a signal of the doom the global economy faces.

The Hang Seng rose 2.18 per cent and the Nikkei mumbled along up 0.52 per cent.

Europe shared London's gloom, with the Cac 40 down 1.33 per cent and the Dax drooping down 1.49 per cent.