BP shares plummeted to 355 pence as investors worried about the rising costs of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill crisis. U.S. President Barack Obama visited the spill hit areas and vowed to use all his power to heal the Gulf Coast. He was speaking at a staging post for oil clean up efforts.
BP's market value has fallen billions of dollars as its share price went down after the BP operated Deepwater Horizon rig sank on April 22.
The explosion that killed 11 people on April 20 started an enormous spill from a leaking well on the sea bed, with huge amounts of oil washing up on the U.S. Gulf coastline, becoming a threat to precious wildlife and local communities.
The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is being seen as the worst ever environmental disaster in U.S. history. BP is to outline a deal by Wednesday for a multi billion dollar fund for the oil disaster victims.
BP directors earlier met in London to discuss the cost of sorting out the disaster, which had jumped to about $US1.6 billion ($1.8 billion), and whether to suspend a dividend payment to shareholders.