FTSE 100 movers: RBS leads march south

13th Jun 2013 14:28

Royal Bank of Scotland led the march of the blue chips southwards on Thursday after pressure from the bank's government owners led to the resignation of Chief Executive Stephen Hester.Although the bank's plans to slash costs in its investment banking arm leaked out, brokers rallied to praise Hester and to slap 'sell' recommendations on the shares due to the increased uncertainty clouding the group as it searched for a new head. Credit checking group Experian was a major faller, the day after whispers emerged from India that its local subsidiary had made a bid for debt-ridden and cash-strapped rival High Mark. Shares in Aberdeen Asset Management continued to endure losses as the group's heavy exposure to tanking emerging markets weigh heavily on client and market sentiment. Going the other way surprisingly after FTSE announced last night that it would drop out of the blue chip index later this month, Evraz shares climbed strongly on Thursday. This counterintuitive move could be due to the statistically proven phenomenon where companies exiting a benchmark can outperform because fund managers no longer have to cover them in order to replicate the wider index. Rio Tinto was another riser on more tangible news that it has agreed to sell its US-based Eagle nickel-copper mine for $325m cash as part of a series of asset sales planned by new Chief Executive Sam Walsh. FTSE 100 - RisersEvraz (EVR) 119.80p +5.37%Eurasian Natural Resources Corp. (ENRC) 242.40p +3.90%Rio Tinto (RIO) 2,761.00p +2.64%Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 1,289.00p +2.22%Antofagasta (ANTO) 899.00p +2.22%Vedanta Resources (VED) 1,174.00p +2.18%CRH (CRH) 1,318.00p +2.09%Anglo American (AAL) 1,399.50p +1.82%BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,791.50p +1.67%Hammerson (HMSO) 495.90p +1.51%FTSE 100 - FallersRoyal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 313.10p -3.84%Experian (EXPN) 1,135.00p -2.83%Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,168.00p -1.85%Capita (CPI) 940.00p -1.62%Tesco (TSCO) 338.10p -1.30%Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 397.70p -1.19%Smiths Group (SMIN) 1,289.00p -1.15%Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 899.50p -1.10%Old Mutual (OML) 182.20p -1.09%Tate & Lyle (TATE) 812.50p -1.04%