Tech stocks set to lose ground to Old economy in FTSE 100

NEWS The sharp falls in the share prices of Sema Group, Bookham Technology and Baltimore Technologies mean they will be almost certainly be victims of the monthly re-appraisal. And they are likely to be replaced by more traditional industries. A spokeswoman for FTSE International who manage the index said all three were among the five companies who were "almost dead certs" to go out when decisions are made after the market closes on Tuesday night. At close of trading last night Bookham Technology was the 164th largest company on the LSE, and Baltimore Technologies was 144th. That means price rises in early trading today for both companies are unlikely to save them from dropping out of the index. Media giant EMAP is also likely to miss the cut. Based on yesterday's closing prices, among the candidates to replace them are Rolls-Royce, Safeway and Scottish and Newcastle breweries. The only good news for technology companies is that newly floated business intelligence company Autonomy may make it in, depending on its performance before the final decision is made on Tuesday. The index is widely regarded as the benchmark guide to the health of the London Stock Exchange. Vodaphone is the biggest single component in the FTSE 100, making up over 10.5 per cent of the weighted index. By Geoffrey Davies and Joey Gardiner