Dominos Pizza leads FTSE fall despite selling record numbers during Superbowl XLIV

However with talks apparently still in progress, International Power plc rose 5.8 pct to 332.1 by 10:30 am.

Overall Electricity was the FTSE biggest performer by sector with Scottish and Southern also gaining 19 pence (1.65 pct).

Meanwhile, the Dow was due to open up after Stock futures rose.

Dominos Pizza, who bucked the trend early last year by announcing a 25 pct increase in profits appears to be under some selling pressure despite Superbowl weekend being one of their biggest takings of the year.

According to Felicia Woods, General Manager of one of the US stores, Super Bowl Sunday sees the peak number of pizzas delivered throughout the year:

"We're swamped up in here," she said "We normally do a hungred a day, probably today we do like 300."

"Drivers are running out the doors and ovens are backed up. I'm gonna be tired that's all" said Woods to WLBT, part of the CNBC network.

The main driver of FTSE falls however were the banks which weakened on evaporating optimism that euro zone debt problems might be receding.

Barclays, HSBC, Standard Charted and RBS all fell 0.1-2.8 pct.

European finance ministers however, tried to reassure counterparts in the G7 that the eurozone crisis was under control.