FTSE 100 movers: Standard Chartered jumps on Swiss bank sale plan

12th Feb 2014 14:21

Standard Chartered was the top riser after appointing a new head of its private banking unit and unveiling plans to sell its Swiss private bank as part of its strategy of narrowing its regional focus. According to The Wall Street Journal, the move followed a comprehensive review by the group. Babcock was rising strongly after announcing its joint venture (JV) had been appointed to Network Rail's two billion-pound National Electrification Programme. The JV, between UK engineering groups Babcock and Costain and French transport firm Alstom, will be one of the four suppliers to help Network Rail to electrify more than two thousand miles of Britain's railway over the next seven years.Miners were lifted following positive comments from Goldman Sachs, which said: "We expect the miners to continue to perform well in the immediate short term, as the market focuses on better cashflow from volume growth, weaker FX, cost reductions and capex cuts." The sector was also lifted by strong data out from China overnight which showed that export growth accelerated to 10.6% from 4.3% previously, while import growth rose to 10% from 8.3%. This resulted in a trade balance of $31.86bn, surprising analysts who had expected a slight decline from the $25.64bn surplus registered in December.Meanwhile, Africa-focused explorer Tullow Oil slumped into the bottom spot after saying that while revenues rose in 2013 profits fell in the face of a £200m increase in exploration write-offs. Sector peer Shell was also firmly lower. FTSE 100 - RisersStandard Chartered (STAN) 1,304.00p +2.68%Legal & General Group (LGEN) 233.00p +2.37%Babcock International Group (BAB) 1,421.00p +1.86%Ashtead Group (AHT) 829.50p +1.72%Rio Tinto (RIO) 3,519.50p +1.72%Sports Direct International (SPD) 720.00p +1.69%Mondi (MNDI) 993.00p +1.53%Glencore Xstrata (GLEN) 337.80p +1.49%Resolution Ltd. (RSL) 371.40p +1.45%Tesco (TSCO) 323.00p +1.35%FTSE 100 - FallersTullow Oil (TLW) 809.50p -4.26%Persimmon (PSN) 1,397.00p -2.58%Sage Group (SGE) 420.00p -1.89%Amec (AMEC) 1,095.00p -1.53%Royal Dutch Shell 'A' (RDSA) 2,112.50p -1.45%G4S (GFS) 231.70p -1.07%Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,500.00p -1.06%Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 2,252.00p -1.01%National Grid (NG.) 805.50p -0.98%CRH (CRH) 1,638.00p -0.97%NR