Morning Markets: FTSE falls as Standard plans £1bn share sale

The FTSE 100 rolled back some of yesterday's gains this morning, with Standard Chartered among the early casualties after announcing surprise plans to issue £1bn in new shares.

The index fell 17.4 points (0.3%) to 4,666 in early trading, with the Asia-focused bank dropping 3.1% to £13.91. Standard did defy analyst predictions however, with its first half results showing profits up 10%. Legal & General stock also fell on the news the insurer cut its interim dividend by 45% to 1.11p in a bid to preserve capital. It also posted a 12% increase in H1 profits today. Meanwhile, RBS, Barclays and Lloyds Banking Group were among the FTSE's top performers, up 3% to 46p, 1.9% to 329p and 1.7% 87p respectively. In the US, the Dow Jones closed up 115 points (1.25%)...