BP shares fall after EPA sanction

Shares in oil major BP fell today after the US' Environmental Protection Agency temporarily blocked it from bidding for new contracts in the US.

The company - which has already paid numerous fines in the US following its catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico - saw shares fall as much as 2.5% after the announcement. The EPA said in a statement it has temporarily suspended BP and its affiliates from new contracts with the US federal government, pointing to the oil company's "lack of business integrity" following the 2010 disaster. "Federal executive branch agencies take these actions to ensure the integrity of Federal programs by conducting business only with responsible individuals or companies. Suspensions are a standar...