Suspect movements in share price fall to an eight-year low
ABNORMAL trading in UK companies before a merger or acquisition announcement fell last year to the lowest level since 2003, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) said in its annual report yesterday.
The FSA monitors share price movement in the two days preceding a stock market announcement by a company to identify abnormal activity that could signal a market leak.
The so-called market cleanliness measure fell to 21.2 per cent in 2010, down from 30.6 per cent the previous year – the level at which it had hovered since rising to 32.4 per cent in 2004.
The drop in suspicious price changes will provide a boost to the FSA’s recent efforts to increase its focus on market abuse.