HSBC, BP and GSK combine in dividend-driven knock to Footsie

A clutch of heavyweight dividend payments knocked almost 20 points off the FTSE 100 on Thursday, with four of the index's biggest companies trading ex-dividend. HSBC Holdings PLC (LSE:HSBA) had the largest impact, removing 5.36 points from the blue-chip index as the shares traded without entitlement to the bank's latest 10-cent quarterly payout.