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Greene King shares slid further through the afternoon to close down 16%. The pub group said sales fell over the summer and its outlook was weak.

Like-for-like sales fell 1.2% in the 18 weeks to 3 September, mainly due to a drop in "value food" sales.

Greene King said it remained "cautious about the trading environment".

It also expected the "challenges of weaker consumer confidence, increased costs and increasing competition to persist over the near term".

The gloomy news from the pub group - a FTSE 250 member - also hit shares in rivals, with Marston's down 8.6% and JD Wetherspoon falling 2.7%.

The mid-cap FTSE 250 index was down 0.44% at 19,610.40, while the benchmark FTSE 100 index ended 19.38 points lower at 7,377.60.

On the currency markets, the pound was boosted by stronger-than-expected manufacturing figures. Sterling rose 0.7% against the dollar to $1.31960 and was 0.63% higher against the euro at 1.09660 euros.