Latest purchases take value of deals to leave capital’s stock market this year past $100bn

Three more London-listed companies are set to be taken over as the value of deals removing firms from the capital’s under-pressure stock market so far this year passes $100bn (£74bn).

On Tuesday, Bodycote, the FTSE 250 industrials group that has been listed on the London Stock Exchange since 1972, agreed a £1.84bn takeover by the US private equity group Veritas.

European stock markets fall sharply and Brent crude rises above $92 a barrlel amid renewed fighting in Middle East

European stock markets are a sea of red, a gloomy start to September.

As traders return from the UK Bank Holiday, the FTSE 100 index in London has fallen 1.1%.