Barclays shares hit by bad debt concerns

LONDON – Barclays saw its share price dive in morning deals here yesterday after a trading update raised bad debt fears at Britain’s third-biggest bank.

Barclays said it was on track to meet analysts’ earnings forecasts for the full year with a strong performance in investment banking. The news was offset by a continuation of weakening credit trends in its Barclaycard credit card operations.Shares in Barclays sank 2,57 per cent to 586,5 pence following the third-quarter update, while London’s FTSE 100 index slipped 0,29 per cent to 5 461,40 points.In reaction, broker Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein advised clients to switch into peers Royal Bank of Scotland, HBOS and Northern Rock, noting that its guidance on Barclaycard should not be taken as a major negative for the British banks sector.Offsetting the bad news, Barclays said it had delivered solid growth in group profits over the nine months to September 30 2005.- Nampa-AFPThe news was offset by a continuation of weakening credit trends in its Barclaycard credit card operations.Shares in Barclays sank 2,57 per cent to 586,5 pence following the third-quarter update, while London’s FTSE 100 index slipped 0,29 per cent to 5 461,40 points.In reaction, broker Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein advised clients to switch into peers Royal Bank of Scotland, HBOS and Northern Rock, noting that its guidance on Barclaycard should not be taken as a major negative for the British banks sector.Offsetting the bad news, Barclays said it had delivered solid growth in group profits over the nine months to September 30 2005.- Nampa-AFP