Profit-taking in leading stocks hampers Footsie

A dose of profit-taking in some of the London market's "super-stocks" was behind the decline in London's benchmark index, the FTSE 100, yesterday.

But the 250 and SmallCap indices were both in excellent form, extending their recent strong gains, while the Techmark 100 index was only a fraction easier on the session.

Dealers said the London market was taking a well-earned breather after its recent rip-roaring recovery which saw Footsie jump some 600 points, or around 10 per cent, since mid-May, when the index plummeted in the wake of the 50 basis points rise in US interest rates and bad news from the TMT sector.