The news comes less than a fortnight after the American Gaming Association, the gambling lobbying body, gave its backing to the industry. The two make up almost 25 per cent of the main London index, leading to a 72.1 point fall in the FTSE 100 to 6,010.0. Chart-watchers will be worried if the index fails to recover in the next few sessions.The steel maker Corus was one bright spot, as the broker Cazenove upped its earnings forecasts for the group for 2006 and 2007 by 15.4 per cent and 44 per cent respectively. In a note to clients, it said: "We don't think the valuation multiples fully reflect yet the potential of ongoing operational improvements, upside to the margin of the long products division versus its European peers or the company's candidacy as a takeover target." The shares firmed 0.75p to close at 88.25p.Volatile online gaming stocks received a setback as reports came in that a US Congress subcommittee has approved a Bill that may toughen US laws against online gambling. Health campaigners say schools feel bound to accept vending machines on site to boost their income.The agreement with the American Beverage Association, which counts all the major players among its members, will cover almost 90 per cent of American schools and some 35 million children. Primary schoolchildren will have access only to low-fat milk and unsweetened flavoured water, while secondary schools will sell only diet versions of popular drinks such as Coke and Pepsi. Growing numbers of school districts and state legislatures have proposed to sweep away banks of vending machines dispensing unhealthy food and drinks, and the new rules will at least enable manufacturers to maintain some degree of influence.

So yesterday, the industry signed up to a voluntary ban brokered by the former president Bill Clinton. Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Cadbury Schweppes have agreed to stop selling fizzy drinks in US schools, to try to head off criticism over their role in rising childhood obesity. The companies' image has soured in recent years, turning them from much-loved purveyors of treats to public health enemy number one. Colt and Cable & Wireless plan to use the spectrum to offer corporate customers converged fixed-mobile services.Andrew Darley, an analyst at KBC Peel Hunt, said: "It sounds like Colt was desperate not to get left behind.".

The 6.6 megahertz of spectrum on offer this time is less valuable than 3G spectrum and was previously utilised only to buffer other frequencies, acting like a pillow to reduce interference.The auction, which raised £3.8m for Ofcom, represents the first in a string of 12 spectrum sales over the next three years. Ofcom declined to comment on the price Colt has paid.It is the first time the UK telecoms regulator has auctioned spectrum - the frequencies which transmit mobile telecoms calls - since 2000 when five telecoms companies, including BT, shelled out £22.5bn for 3G licences. The auction was conducted via sealed bids and two participants, including Orange, missed out after offering £50,000 in line with the reserve price. Colt paid 30 times more than C&W, and almost six times more than the incumbent operator BT for exactly the same rights. A Colt spokeswoman said the company was comfortable with what it had paid and argued that offering a lower price may have risked losing out altogether. Colt Telecom, the fixed-line telecoms company, paid £1.5m for its licence, while close rivals such as Cable & Wireless paid only £51,000.