Dow dropping and FTSE follows

Broker downgrades slammed mortgage lenders, with Northern Rock crumbling – 38.5 points down, or 5.26%, to 693.5. Tate & Lyle was hit hard on profit taking, falling 26.5 points, or 4.72%, to 535.5. Alliance & Leicester was another downgraded, leading it to drop 47 points, or 4.44%, to 1011. Vedanta Resources pretty much kept the solid gains it made in the morning all day, it posted the only significant gain, up 48 points, or 2.68%, to 1840. In New York, stocks are taking a battering this morning as investors reacted to a record home sales fall in July. The Dow Jones is currently down 1...