London close: RBS leads the charge

4th Jan 2010 17:12

A strong start to the year on Wall Street gave London a boost, prompting the blue-chip index to finish at its highest point for the day.Part-nationalised lender Royal Bank of Scotland's led the advance after Exane BNP Paribas suggested that 'fundamental (rather than purely speculative) investor interest' will return in 2010. The French bank has cranked up its rating from 'neutral' to 'outperform'.Mining stocks were wanted, none more so than Kazakhstan based mining group Eurasian Natural Resources, which Merrill Lynch reckons is sitting pretty, as it will benefit from higher metals prices without suffering the same level of cost increases set to afflict its South African rivals.Broker tips also gave a boost to DIY retailers Home Retail and Kingfisher. Societe Generale believes sales trends at Home Retail's Homebase chain are on an upward curve, while Credit Suisse has turned more bullish on a number of non-food retailers, with Kingfisher among them.Cairn Energy was wanted on news that the oil explorer has secured a second drilling rig to assist its exploration programme in the Disko West area offshore Greenland in the second half of 2010. The rig, the Stena Don, will work alongside the Stena Forth, and help increase Cairn's operational flexibility and capability in its exploration activities.Security company G4S has bought Nuclear Security Services Corporation (NSSC) from founder Inge Collins for $22m (£14m).On the downside, property groups were out of favour with Hammerson hit after it sold an office block in Paris at below book value. Land Securities, British Land and Liberty International declined in sympathy.Insurers were also out of favour, with Standard Life, Legal & General, Aviva and Resolution the worst hit.Mortgage lender Paragon and plumbers merchant Wolseley got a boost from the latest mortgage lending figures from the Bank of England, which showed the number of UK mortgage approvals in Novemberhit their highest level since March 2008.The mortgage news did nothing for housebuilders Bellway, Persimmon and Bovis, all of which fell, as did estate agent Savills. UBS has developed an appetite for The Restaurant Group, owner of the Frankie & Bennie's and Chiquito brands. The Swiss bank has raised its rating for the stock from neutral to buy and upped its price target from 205p to 218p. the company issues a trading statement at the end of the week. Merchant bank Close Brothers Group has bought up the £94m invoice financing loan book of GMAC Commercial Finance for a maximum of £98m.Shares in drug development company Minster Pharmaceuticals received a pick-me-up after acquisitive sector peer Proximagen Neuroscience made an agreed bid for the company. Minster shareholders are being offered 6p cash for each Minster share they own, valuing the whole of Minster at £4.3m.Irish low-cost airline Ryanair has been accused of being 'puerile' and 'childish' over its payment policy by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT). John Fingleton, the business watchdog's chief executive, criticised the carrier for adding fees when customers use a specific type of bank card to pay online. He said Ryanair operates within 'the narrow letter of the law.'Blue-collar recruitment and training specialist Staffline said earnings for the full year will be in line with upwardly revised market expectations. The group announced in November that it anticipates earnings to be ahead of forecasts.Medical technology group Lifeline Scientific expects results for calendar year 2009 to be ahead of forecasts after strong trading during the second half of the year.Aim-listed Radicle Projects, set up to buy Australian agribusinesses, said pre-tax losses widened sharply in 2009.Diagnostics testing kit firm Immunodiagnostic Systems (IDH) hopes to benefit from a new 5-year distribution agreement signed by Technogenetics to which IDH supplies its products.FTSE 100 - RisersRoyal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 32.10p +9.93%Cairn Energy (CNE) 355.00p +6.73%Smiths Group (SMIN) 1,069.00p +5.42%Eurasian Natural Resources (ENRC) 960.00p +4.92%Vedanta Resources (VED) 2,736.00p +4.79%Home Retail Group (HOME) 295.60p +4.64%FTSE 100 - FallersHammerson (HMSO) 412.20p -2.78%British Land Co (BLND) 466.80p -2.75%Standard Life (SL.) 211.80p -2.17%Land Securities Group (LAND) 673.00p -1.75%Legal & General Group (LGEN) 79.50p -1.36%Imperial Tobacco Group (IMT) 1,935.00p -1.28%