Reports that Serbian forces are to engage in a partial withdrawal from Kosovo, although unconfirmed at the time, transformed sentiment in a London equity market suffering from the twin threat of international turmoil and a big stock overhang.
On its knees and hit by that twin thrust, the FTSE 100 had dropped well below the 6,300 level, additionally burdened by the poor opening performance of Wall Street before the Balkans report reached the market.
The response in New York and London was instantaneous, with Wall Street rallying strongly after a depressed opening.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average picked up substantially from an initial retreat which saw an early 40-point decline change into a 50-point advance not long after London closed for business.
Such was the relief on hard-pressed London traders that the FTSE 100, then standing at a session low of 6,280.4, down 75.6, recaptured much of that to finish only 7.2 off at 6,348.8.
Before the Kosovo reports affected markets, London had suffered from persistent light selling of stocks, mostly in the top 350.
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