London close: Greece pulls Footsie down again

6th May 2010 16:43

Footsie ended the day sharply lower as Greece's problems reared up again and investors fretted about the outcome of today's election. Banks were hit hard as ratings agency Moody's warned that the UK lenders are "at risk of Greek contagion". Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland, HSBC and even Asia-focused Standard Chartered shifted rapidly into reverse after Moody's said banks in the UK, as well as in Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain "are increasingly moving into the focus of the markets" as worries over sovereign debt burgeon.Rockhopper Exploration generated huge excitement after claiming the first oil find in the potentially lucrative waters off the Falkland Islands. Well 14/10-2 on the Sea Lion prospect in the North Falklands Basin drilled down 2,744 metres, and initial data indicates the well is an oil discovery.Fellow Falklands explorer Desire Petroleum disappointed last month as early drilling results in its campaign around the Falkland Islands failed to meet expectations but the shares have been carried higher on the wave of euphoria surrounding Rockhopper's discovery.Back on Footsie, Cobham was another faller after the defence group said that better than expected first quarter order intake has not fully compensated for the general slowdown in orders experienced late last year.Fund manager Schroders was top of the tree, however, after it said the momentum built up in 2009 has continued into 2010 with high levels of new business. Total funds under management (FUM) climbed to £167.9bn at the end of March from £148.4bn at the end of 2009.Elsewhere in the financial sector RSA Insurance Group also did well after it said it has made a good start to the year with strong performances in the UK, Canada and Latin America. Net written premiums in the first quarter of 2010 were 5% higher than in the corresponding period of 2009 at £1.9bn, or 3% higher at constant exchange rates (CER).Sector peer Prudential rose on speculation that its acquisition of AIG's Asian assets will collapse, leaving it vulnerable to a takeover itself. Adding some weight to this hypothesis, insurance firm consolidator Resolution has hinted it may be in the running to buy the UK arm of Prudential. Chief executive John Tiner told reporters this morning its shareholders are ready to produce "significant further funding to finance an acquisition," adding that they were ready to put up three to five times the £600m raised it listed in 2008. Can and packaging maker Rexam picked up after it saw increased demand for its products in the first quarter, helping the company deliver results ahead of expectations.Drinks brands giant Diageo also gained after reporting a 12% rise in organic sales in the third quarter and maintained its full year guidance.Medical devices firm Smith & Nephew posted a better than expected 27% jump in first quarter profit and said it is on the right track for the rest of the year. The trading profit in the quarter was $250m, up from $183m in the first quarter of 2009. Revenues rose to $995m in the period compared to $865m last time.The response to results from Wm Morrison was not been so warm. The supermarket group reported a small rise in first-quarter like for like sales but warned that it remains cautious on the economic environment and consumer spending. In the 13 weeks to 2 May, like for like sales grew by 0.8% (5.2% including fuel), with total sales excluding fuel up by 5.9% (9.5% including fuel).Indian mining giant Vedanta posted a sharp rise in earnings for the year to March 31 after ramping up metals production and benefiting from the rebound in commodity prices. The company posted earnings before depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $2.3bn, a rise of 42% from the previous year, on revenues that climbed by 21% to $7.9m.Gold miner Randgold Resources said the first three months had been a tough operational quarter but it had made solid progress on all of its strategic objectives. Petropavlovsk, the gold miner formerly known as Peter Hambro Mining, saw a sharp reduction in output of the yellow metal in the first quarter as planned expansion work disrupted production.Rio Tinto has denied media reports that it has shelved projects in Australia in response to proposals for new taxes on miners' profits, but said it is 'reviewing the possible impact' of the tax.Testing and inspections firm Intertek has bought Norca Ingenieria de Calidad, a Spanish company specialising in infrastructure risk assessment for the energy industry.Housebuilder Bovis Homes said sale prices have been modestly ahead of expectations so far in 2010. Weekly reservation sales have been in line with management expectations and have been consistent since the bad weather in the first two weeks of the year melted away.Business publisher and events organiser United Business Media (UBM) is back on the acquisition trail, buying selected assets of CenTradeX, a provider of market intelligence tools.Engineer Tomkins said it has seen stronger than expected demand in its industrial and automotive businesses and believes the trend is not just due to restocking.D1 Oils moved higher after it confirmed two companies are considering launching a bid for the biofuels outfit at a "substantial" premium to the current share price.FTSE 100 - RisersSchroders (SDR) 1,389.00p +6.11%Rexam (REX) 321.50p +2.81%Randgold Resources (RRS) 5,580.00p +2.48%Home Retail Group (HOME) 274.30p +2.05%FTSE 100 - FallersBarclays (BARC) 301.70p -6.52%Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 56.64p -5.76%Cobham (COB) 244.30p -5.64%Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,611.50p -4.67%Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 48.23p -4.31%FTSE 250 - RisersGem Diamonds (GEMD) 280.00p +5.90%SDL International (SDL) 450.00p +3.93%AG Barr (BAG) 935.00p +3.83%Inchcape (INCH) 33.00p +3.45%Stobart Group Ltd. (STOB) 147.00p +3.16%FTSE 250 - FallersTalvivaara Mining Company (TALV) 356.20p -10.05%Hansen Transmissions International (HSN) 87.15p -8.60%Premier Foods (PFD) 24.49p -7.09%Trinity Mirror (TNI) 136.30p -6.19%Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 343.00p -5.25%