THE latest Alan Greenspan inspired storm in global markets looked to have blown itself out yesterday, but not without leaving investors badly bruised by the experience.
London blew hot and cold, in that order, prior to ending an extremely nervous session only marginally easier on the day.
Although the market is still expecting the US Federal Reserve to nudge interest rates higher after Tuesday's meeting, especially in "the wake of the Fed chairman's comments on pre emptive rate rises, many observers feel a 25 [basis points rise has already been factored into prices.
After safely negotiating the expiry of the FTSE 100 and Mid 250 futures, plus the expiry of FTSE 100 options, London still kept a weather eye on Wall Street ahead of "triple witching", the expiry of index futures and options, along with stock options.
The FTSE 100, which has had to endure a series of dismal performances, finished 3.3 lower at 4,254.8, while the FTSE Mid 250 closed 0.2 off at 4,565.0 and the SmallCap index 0.8 easier at 2,320.7.
Over the week, however, the FTSE 100 index has fallen almost 170 points, or 3.8 per cent, losing the 4,400 and 4,300 levels in the process, while the FTSE Mid 250 has lost 142.8 points, or 3 per cent.
