Flat day for markets as bad news piles up

The FTSE 100 retreated today, following two days of gains.

The index closed 67.54 points, or 1.58 per cent, down at 4215.13 – mirroring a similar decline in Frankfurt''s DAX.

Meanwhile, New York''s Dow Jones had retreated 0.92 per cent by 16:33 BST.

Profit-taking among investors, poor UK housing figures and worse-than expected earnings declarations are all thought to have contributed to the flat trading.

The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) also said today that factory output was the worst since 1980.

Speaking to Reuters, Blue Index senior trader Ben Timms said: "After an initial spike higher on follow-on interest following gains in the market…there is a little bit of profit-taking coming through after two sessions of gains."

Commenting on the CBI figures to the news agency, Michael Saunders at Citigroup added: "The plunge in orders, output and confidence is so sharp that it raises risks that the recession will be really severe."