Market report: Wednesday close

ANY lingering hopes that a buyer will be found shortly for internet bank

But CSFB is more concerned about fundamentals and says first-quarter numbers from the bank will lead to a downgrade of consensus profits of about 15%. That will only add to the woes of the Prudential, Britain's biggest life assurer, which put its controlling 79% stake in Egg up for sale at the start of last year following big losses in France.

But after almost seven months it had failed to find a buyer, and in July withdrew Egg from the market. Chief executive Jonathan Bloomer said he had had a change of heart and was looking to develop the business. That move sent the share price plunging from around 150p to a low of just under 100p.

Earlier this year, Bloomer said he was leaving the company following intense pressure from institutional investors. He is being replaced by Mark Tucker of HBOS.

City speculators reckon Tucker might accept a knockdown price for Egg just to get rid of the business and refocus on traditional areas. That now seems unlikely but speculators were clinging to the hope that a buyer can still be found by the autumn. Egg retreated 1¼p to 102¾p. Prudential dipped 18p to 485p after assuring shareholders first-quarter new business sales were in line with expectations. Broker UBS repeated its buy recommendation.

Share prices generally squandered an early lead with investors unable to extend yesterday's gains. The FTSE 100 index fell 33.6 points to 4822.0 unimpressed by a rise for the Dow Jones Industrial Average on Wall Street this afternoon. That was despite the latest US inflation number, which showed its biggest rise in two-and-a-half years after stripping out energy costs and food.