FTSE 100 hits 15 year high
The FTSE 100 closed on Wednesday maintaining its 15-year peak.
The FTSE 100 carried on its strong performance into Wednesday (February 19th) as it remained unchanged.
Wednesday morning had seen the London index hit 6,921.3, its highest rate in 15 years before dropping back and closing at 6,898.08. It was a hugely positive performance and almost reached the record closing high of 6,930.2, last seen in December 1999. The previous intra-day peak was 6,950.6, reached during the same month 15 years ago.
As seen across markets in the US and Asia, there is concern growing among investors about the future of Greece in the eurozone. Since anti-austerity party Syriza took control of the country there have been suggestions that it could possibly be leaving the eurozone. These concerns were exacerbated when talks over an agreement on the bailout between Greece and the European Union collapsed.
The European Central Bank (ECB) has now reportedly agreed to increase the emergency funding available to Greek banks to €68.3 billion (£50.3 billion). This represents a rise of €3.3 billion in the Emergency Liquidity Assistance, critical for Greece's banks.
Investor confidence in a solution to the Greece problem waned throughout Wednesday. The ongoing conflict in Ukraine, despite the announcement of a ceasefire last week, also has investors weary.
Company news
Hargreaves Lansdown was the biggest mover in the FTSE 100. The company enjoyed a 3.4 per cent while it was a much different story for shopping centre owner Intu Properties which dropped almost 3.3 per cent to become the day's biggest faller.
The woes for Tesco continued with the supermarket ending 0.7 per cent. The company announced the appointment of John Allan as its new chairman. Mr Allan joins Tesco after holding the position of deputy chairman of electrical retailer of Dixons Carphone.