It didn't get any better as the afternoon wore on. Leading shares finally closed 2.58% lower after a host of disappointing company results and hints that the Bank of England is in no hurry to cut interest rates again any time soon.
The Bank's statement to accompany today's expected 25 basis point reduction pointed to concerns about inflationary pressures, which needed to be balanced against signs of an economic downturn. In short, don't hold your breath for another cut.
The market did not like that one bit. The FTSE 100 closed 151.3 points lower at 5724.1, while the FTSE 250 fell 140.3 points to 9764.2.
Sentiment was not helped by poor figures and badly received trading statements from the likes of Yell, Rolls Royce, BT and GlaxoSmithKline (which contrived a shock profit warning to mark Jean-Pierre Garnier's departure). These heavyweights saw share price falls of between 7% and (in the case of Yell) 15%.
There were some bright spots. Gas group BG continued to impress, beating analysts' forecasts and seeing its shares climb 41p to £11.18 as a consequence. Mid cap engineer Invensys was also heading in the right direction, up 10% after better-than-expected third-quarter figures.
