FTSE slides 2.4% over China concern

UK stocks got no respite in the new year, after their worst annual drop since 2011, amid investor concern over a slowdown in China, the biggest consumer of commodities.

The FTSE 100 Index slid 2.4 per cent at the close in London, the biggest drop in three months and its worst start to a year since 2000.

All but two stocks fell, with Randgold Resources and Fresnillo bucking the trend as investors seeking safer assets boosted gold prices.

China’s CSI 300 Index tumbled 7 per cent before triggering a trading halt, as data showed deterioration in manufacturing and investors anticipated the end of a ban on share sales.

Anglo American and Glencore, last year's worst performers on the FTSE 100, each slid at least 5.8 per cent to lead losses among miners.

Standard Chartered, which gets a majority of its revenue from Asia, fell 3.9 per cent.

The broader FTSE All Share-Index slipped 2.2 per cent on Monday, following its worst yearly decline since 2011.

The ISEQ Index dropped 1.4 per cent, after jumping 30 per cent in 2015.

- Bloomberg