BP dents FTSE 100 dividends
UK DIVIDENDS among FTSE 100 firms are forecast to fall by eight per cent this year to £54.7bn, mainly due to the BP freeze on shareholder payouts.
The BP disaster has put a big dent in the income payments that investors can expect with
over £5.4bn of dividends being cancelled up until 31 December 2010. However, the number of firms increasing or reinstating dividends rose to 189, double the number who cut or cancelled them. Last year by contrast, in the teeth of the recession, almost as many firms slashed or abandoned their payouts as increased them.