newsbytes@clarinet.com (01/14/90)
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1990 JAN 12 (NB) -- The London Stock Exchange led the fall on Friday, with the Financial Times Stock Index (FTSE) plummeting 38.3 points to close the day on 2,380.1 points. Friday's traded volume amounted to 523 million shares compared with more than 570 million shares changing hands on Thursday. Leading the losing companies was Ferranti International which reported a loss of 4 pence (6 cents) a share to finish at 35 pence (53 cents). The company reported a loss of $25.56 million from discontinued operations. In Frankfurt, meanwhile, the market was mixed and did not follow London's lead. The Frankfurt index closed at 1,855.66 points. Amongst the many active issues, Siemens has bought a controlling interest in Nixdorf, the ailing West German computer company which reported huge losses last year. Siemens now holds more than 70 percent of Nixdorf's stock. This makes Siemens the largest European computer company, beating Groupe Bull of France, which became the largest European computer company after its purchase of Zenith a few months ago. (Peter Vekinis/19900113)