London shares have closed at their lowest level for two years after technology and banking shares weighed on the market.
The FTSE-100 Index closed down 50 points at 5858.6.
The last time it fell below that level was February 1999.
Falls on the overseas markets hurt sentiment in London, and tech stocks took a battering.
Software company Autonomy fell 176p at £11.90, chip designer Arm slipped 7p to 310p, while computer services group Dimension Data was 10½p lighter at 392p.
Among the telecom fallers were Cable & Wireless off 32½p at 685p, BT down 3p at 532p, while Vodafone slipped 1½p to 182p, and Colt Telecom was down 44p at £11.42.
Telecom equipment group Energis also fell, down 6p at 422p.
Banks were also exerting a downwards pull, with Lloyds down 20½p at 651½p, Barclays down 52p at £21.42 and Royal Bank of Scotland off 34p at £16.25. Abbey National also fell, off 38p at £11.60, while HSBC slipped 23p to 881p and Standard Chartered was 14½p lighter at 989½p.
However, moving in the other direction was aero-engine maker Rolls-Royce, which sparked 12%. Shares rose 23p to 214½p after the group announced full-year results and said it was confident of recording earnings growth in 2002.
The biggest Footsie risers were Rolls-Royce up 23p to 214½p, Spirent, up 36p at 417p, Misys up 25p at 575p, GKN up 29p at 833½p and Lattice up 4½p at 138p.
The biggest fallers were Autonomy down 176p at £11.90, Hays down 24p at 324p, British Airways down 23p at 351½p, Amvescap down 69p at £11.68 and Schroders down 54p at £10.18.
PA