RBS shares slump on IT chaos worries

By SCOTT REID
Published on 27/06/2012 02:17

Royal Bank of Scotland was the standout faller among Britain’s biggest stocks yesterday as it continued to take a battering over its IT crisis.

Shares in the part-nationalised lender slumped almost 4 per cent – the biggest loser on the FTSE 100 amid an otherwise muted session.

Some in the City believe the recent computer meltdown could cost the bank tens of millions of pounds. Shares in RBS closed down 9.1p, or 3.8 per cent, at 227.7p.

The wider Footsie lost early session gains to end the day off 3.69 points at 5,446.96 amid doubts that a European summit will get to grips with the debt crisis.

Investors reacted with scepticism to reports that leaders will agree to give the EU greater fiscal control over the 17 nations of the eurozone to help stop borrowing spiralling out of control.

There was also more economic gloom in the UK, with grim official figures revealing government borrowing surged by £17.9 billion in May, up from £15.2bn the previous year, as the UK’s double-dip recession took its toll.

BSkyB shot close to the top of the risers’ board after News Corp, which owns a sizeable chunk of the broadcaster said it was considering separating its broadcast and print businesses.

The announcement triggered speculation that a renewed bid for the broadcaster was now more likely.

Shares rose almost 3 per cent or 18p to 674p.

In the FTSE 250, delivery firm Ocado suffered a hefty slide, down 20 per cent to 86p, after it reported a slight improvement in half-year profits but warned current conditions were challenging, with the potential for disruption due to the Olympics.

NEW YORK: Wall Street bounced back last night, but trading was light as the outlook remained clouded by doubts ahead of yet another summit to tackle the European debt crisis.

The Dow Jones industrial average edged up 32.47 points, or 0.26 per cent, to finish on 12,535.13 while the broader Standard & Poor’s 500 Index gained 6.32 points, or 0.48 per cent, to close on 1,320.04. The Nasdaq Composite rose 17.90 points, or 0.63 per cent, to end the day on 2,854.06.