Worldcom ripples flood FTSE

Global markets took a pounding today following yesterday's revelations of further accountancy fraud by a major US corporation, and the FTSE 100 index fell a neat 100 points by the close at 4,531. This was not as bad a drop as earlier in the day, but still put the market in touching distance of its September lows last year. The FTSE is now approaching levels not seen since 1996. Only nine companies were able to make gains today, with the rest suffering share price losses. The lucky ones were Marks & Spencer, up 0.25p to 357.5p, Lattice, up 0.25p to 174.25p, Hays, up 0...