SHARES in London set a new record for the second day running after Wall Street passed an important milestone during morning trading.

The Dow Jones index climbed above the 6000 level for the first time yesterday before profit taking sent it lower again. It closed last night down just over 13 point at Just below 5980.

The FTSE 100 index closed nearly 7 points higher at 4031.5, although down from the day's earlier high of 4046.8. However, share and bond prices in Dublin eased back on profit taking.

The Dow Jones index gained 8 points to reach 6002, boosted by news of a proposed joint venture between Texaco and Shell, before falling back to 5998 by late morning.

However, market nerves about potential clashes at the Conservative Party conference this week took gilts slightly lower.