FTSE 100 movers: Banks and miners dive as utilities climb higher

11th May 2012 15:03

Banks were heavy fallers in the opening hour on the back of the JP Morgan surprise trading loss. Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds and HSBC were all among the worst performers. One stock in the financial sector bucking the trend though was hedge fund manager Man Group, which jumped after an upgrade from HSBC. Mining stocks were pushed lower, with the demand outlook weighed down by the gloomy Chinese data from the world's second-largest economy. Falling metals prices were also providing some downward pressure. Vedanta, Evraz, Xstrata, Glencore, Kazkahmys, Rio Tinto and ENRC were firmly out of favour, with the latter being weighed down by a target price cut from UBS after the miner's first-quarter production figures missed estimates. Meanwhile utilities were in demand as investors treated to the typically 'safer' stocks, with Severn Trent rising into the top spot, with United Utilities also making it into the top 10. FTSE 100 - RisersSevern Trent (SVT) 1,690.00p +2.92%Man Group (EMG) 88.30p +2.73%Hammerson (HMSO) 427.80p +2.71%Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 357.30p +2.70%British Land Co (BLND) 504.00p +2.46%Shire Plc (SHP) 2,031.00p +2.06%Experian (EXPN) 927.00p +1.87%Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 315.00p +1.81%Land Securities Group (LAND) 747.50p +1.77%United Utilities Group (UU.) 640.00p +1.59%FTSE 100 - FallersVedanta Resources (VED) 1,067.00p -4.56%Xstrata (XTA) 1,041.00p -4.32%Eurasian Natural Resources Corp. (ENRC) 515.50p -4.00%Glencore International (GLEN) 381.50p -3.78%Barclays (BARC) 201.60p -3.45%Evraz (EVR) 337.60p -2.71%Kazakhmys (KAZ) 756.50p -2.51%Polymetal International (POLY) 797.00p -2.39%Ashmore Group (ASHM) 352.00p -2.30%Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 257.00p -2.24%NR