City action after bombings

The FTSE 100 suffered its steepest fall since the start of the Iraq war

BBC Radio 4's Money Box was broadcast on Saturday, 9 July, 2005 at 1204 BST.

The programme was repeated on Sunday, 10 July, 2005, at 2102 BST.

Read the programme transcript

The London Stock Exchange (LSE) used special powers for the first time on Thursday to stop the markets running out of control in the wake of the London bombings.

As news of the attacks emerged, the FTSE 100 plunged, wiping more than £44bn off the value of stocks in London.

Huge volumes of shares were traded and officials became concerned about automated trading systems, which make decisions without human input.

The LSE asked member firms to switch them off, and by the afternoon markets had bounced back.

To find out how the City coped we spoke to the Lord Mayor, Michael Savory.

Plus we asked Martin Graham, Director of Market Services at the London Stock Exchange, why he had acted against "black box" trading.

And we spoke to Alpesh Patel, writer, trader and stock market expert, of Agile Partners Asset Management about the City's reaction.

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Presenter: Paul Lewis
Producers: Paul O'Keeffe and Jessica Dunbar
Reporter: Chris A'Court