CITY traders yesterday marked the first anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks in sombre mood.

The Square Mile has been hard hit by the attacks, which struck at the heart of America's financial centre.

In the City, trading came to a halt as workers recalled the horrors and thought of the friends and colleagues they lost when the planes struck the World Trade Centre.

The London Stock Exchange observed a two-minutes silence at 1.46pm - the time the first plane hit the World Trade Centre.

At the offices of Cantor Fitzgerald, which suffered some of the biggest losses of employees at the World Trade Centre, work appeared to start as normal, but it masked a deep sense of emotion.

As the north tower collapsed after being hit by the hijacked plane, the lives of 658 Cantor employees, several of whom were British, were lost in the rubble.

Staff in London watched in horror as the plane struck the tower where about 1,000 of their colleagues worked. Some had even been on the phone to them at the moment of impact.

A silence was observed at 1.46pm, and again at 3.29pm, when the north tower containing the Cantor offices collapsed. The London office then closed for the rest of the day following a private memorial service.

Earlier in the day, at the Lloyd's of London insurance complex, thousands of underwriters and brokers witnessed a memorial service for the September 11 victims, at which the Lutine Bell was rung.

The Lutine Bell was originally rung to signal overdue ships, but is now rung on Remembrance Day, and to mark tragedies.