July 4, 2002	Thursday	Rabi-us-Sani 22,1423

LONDON, July 3: Shares prices at the London stock market on Wednesday were at their lowest levels since May 1997, with more than 25 billion pound wiped from the value of Britain’s publicly quoted companies as the FTSE-100 index tumbled 120.7 at 4426.1.

The London city investors have been given stark warning that the financial meltdown is set to continue. The index now is below the level it closed at on 21 September, in the wake of the attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Centre.

The Dow Jones had fallen almost 15 per cent during the past year, while the Dax in Germany is down 32 per cent.

Investors worldwide have lost faith in corporate America and its attempt to puff up profits by any means. Corporate collapses of high profile names such as WorldCom, Enron, and Tyco have become regular occurrences.

The meltdown at the European stock markets could badly affect the stock market in Pakistan, it has been learnt.