The UK's top share index, the FTSE 100, had a disappointing end to Thursday - after reaching a morning high of 7,540, it closed down 0.37% at 7,469.

However, stock markets on the other side of the Atlantic suffered a much more difficult time.

US shares tumbled yesterday after strong economic data fuelled speculation of further interest-rate rises by the Federal Reserve.

The benchmark S&P 500 fell 1.45%, while the Dow Jones was down 1.05%.

Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA, warned that the "grinch sell-off is firmly in place".

He told the Telegraph: "Global co-ordinated central bank tightening has yet to fully impact most of the economic readings for the major economies and that should have investors nervous over earnings downgrades and credit risks."

Nasdaq losses

Losses were led by the tech-heavy Nasdaq, which slumped 2.18% as major Silicon Valley stocks including Apple, Microsoft and Amazon all slid into the red.

It came after a new estimate of third-quarter GDP figures showed the US economy grew 3.2% over the period, up from previous estimates of 2.9%.

Separate figures from the Labor Department showed the number of Americans filing for state unemployment benefits stood at 216,000 last week - well below forecasts of 222,000.

  • US electric-car maker Tesla had another bad day yesterday, with its shares closing nearly 9% down - meaning the firm has lost nearly 70% of its value in the year to date.

Forbes reports that Tesla shares have hit their lowest level since October 2020 after the company upped discounts on its vehicles.

Investors are said to be growing more and more sceptical on Tesla's growth story, especially with its CEO Elon Musk having his head turned by the new apple of his eye, Twitter.

Tesla's market capitalisation is now around £325billion - compared to £1trillion in January.

Concerns about easing demand for Tesla cars following its latest price cuts are "the straw that broke the camel's back" for Tesla stock, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives told Forbes, adding the latest worries are "pouring gasoline on the raging fire" on Tesla shares.

That fire has been stoked by none other than Mr Musk, as Tesla stock's decline this year has coincided with his £36billion purchase of Twitter and subsequent self-appointment as CEO of the social media company.

£19billion sale

Mr Musk has sold £19billion in Tesla stock this year to fund his Twitter venture, and drawn the ire of Wall Street for spending his time on the far-less valuable social media company.

Mr Ives added: "The Musk-driven fiasco is a disaster of epic proportions with Tesla and Twitter in a spider web."

FTSE 100

The FTSE 100 was up two points at 7,471 shortly after opening this morning, following yesterday's 28-point loss.

No FTSE 350 companies are due to report today.

Brent crude futures were 0.91% higher at $81.73 a barrel.

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