FTSE loses further ground

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London, Nov 30: Britain’s top shares failed to hold on to an early rise and were led lower on Tuesday by Rentokil Initial and Compass, after both companies signaled they are struggling to improve performances after a tough year.

Rentokil slumped 6.5% after it warned that trading was likely to deteriorate into the first-half of 2005, as it continues to suffer from shrinking margins.

“The focus is on the outlook for next year and there is more evidence that it’s taking a lot longer to turn around than people expected,” one dealer said.

By 1124 GMT the FTSE 100 share index was down 30 points, or 0.6%, at 4,719.8, to erase Monday’s slim rise and tug the index over 100 points away from the 29-month high it hit earlier this month. Compass Group, which like Rentokil had already been unsettled by worries that trading had been poor, fell 6% after delivering underlying annual profit at the bottom of market forecasts and failed to offer reassurance that margins are improving, dealers said.