London close: Stocks gain on US data, but Cyprus still in focus

26th Mar 2013 16:42

Strong economic data from the States lifted stocks in afternoon trade on Tuesday, but UK markets remained rangebound with one eye kept firmly on Cyprus.US durable-goods orders grew at a 5.7% clip in February from a month earlier, well ahead of the 3.9% increase forecast by the consensus. Meanwhile, the S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index showed that prices gained 8.1% in the 12 months ending January, ahead of the 7.9% increase expected and the highest annual rate since the summer of 2006.Benchmark indices Stateside started strongly after the opening bell on Wall Street - with the S&P 500 within touching distance of its all-time high again - as traders shrugged off a slump in consumer confidence in March and a larger-than-expected fall in new home sales in February, also revealed today."Equities have pushed on again during today's session as traders responded to positive macro data from the States and priced in the likelihood of a successful resolution to the Cypriot banking saga," said Toby Morris, the Senior Sales Trader at CMC Markets.Nevertheless, it was clear to see that markets were still nervous with just 32 points separating the FTSE 100's intraday low (6,371) and high (6,402).Cyprus still in focusFollowing the €10bn deal to bail out Cyprus at the weekend, which involved forcing big losses on uninsured depositors, sentiment surrounding Cyprus was still fragile after comments from the head of the Eurogroup yesterday. Jeroen Dijsselbloem implied in an interview that the hit on depositors would serve as a model or template for future bailouts, causing markets across Europe to sink yesterday. While Dijsselbloem later back-tracked and published a new statement claiming that "Cyprus is a specific case with exceptional challenges", traders in Spain and Italy in particular are clearly worried, with benchmarks in Madrid and Milan registering sharp losses today.Meanwhile, according to market chatter, Bank of Cyprus Chairman Andreas Artemis is reported to have resigned due to differences with the central bank over the lender's recapitalisation and handling of the crisis.FTSE 100: Aberdeen extends gains on strong first halfAberdeen Asset Management advanced again after its first-half trading update yesterday. Bank of America, JPMorgan, Credit Suisse and Exane BNP Paribas all chose to increase their target prices for the stock this morning, while Numis upgraded the shares to 'buy'. Morrison shares jumped after Citigroup raised its recommendation on the supermarket giant from 'neutral' to 'buy'. The broker said it has the "strongest economic model of the three listed UK supermarkets" which also include Tesco and Sainsbury.Mining giant ENRC dropped as part-owner Kazakhmys announced a $2.2bn impairment charge after writing down its 26% holding in ENRC in its 2012 results.Catering company Compass tumbled as the group said profits had been hit by difficult economic conditions across Europe and Japan. Wolseley retreated after the plumbing merchant's half-year profit slipped on weakening demand in Europe and Canada.FTSE 250: Savills tanks on rumoured stake saleSavills dropped this afternoon after it was rumoured that Credit Suisse was placing nearly eight million shares (equal to a stake of 5.8-5.9%) in the estate agents at up to 545p each on behalf of Oaktree Capital, the private equity group that it among Savills' largest shareholders. Kazakhmys was also a heavy faller after swinging into the red in 2012 on the back of substantial write-downs. According to Prime Markets, the company faces "a bleak few years" and the stock could be on its way back to 2008/2009 lows of around 220p (yesterday's close: 444p).Housebuilding stocks were performing well today after UBS said that the recent strong sector performance (up 58% over the last 12 months) will continue with the launch of the government's 'Help to Buy' scheme. The broker has upgraded both Redrow and Bovis and now has a 'buy' rating for all UK-listed housebuilders.Sector peer Bellway was also on the rise this morning after raising its dividend by 50% in the first half following a 47.5% jump in pre-tax profits.FTSE 100 - RisersAberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 428.40p +4.03%Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 276.00p +3.49%Polymetal International (POLY) 881.00p +2.74%Melrose Industries (MRO) 263.50p +2.53%Wood Group (John) (WG.) 856.50p +2.33%Prudential (PRU) 1,098.00p +2.23%Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 1,443.00p +2.20%London Stock Exchange Group (LSE) 1,320.00p +2.17%Fresnillo (FRES) 1,399.00p +2.04%Reed Elsevier (REL) 782.00p +2.02%FTSE 100 - FallersEurasian Natural Resources Corp. (ENRC) 260.00p -3.02%Aggreko (AGK) 1,813.00p -2.26%Compass Group (CPG) 824.00p -1.32%Wolseley (WOS) 3,173.00p -1.18%BT Group (BT.A) 277.60p -1.14%GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,508.00p -0.98%Pearson (PSON) 1,176.00p -0.76%British Sky Broadcasting Group (BSY) 889.50p -0.73%Experian (EXPN) 1,140.00p -0.70%Smiths Group (SMIN) 1,268.00p -0.70%FTSE 250 - RisersLonmin (LMI) 304.00p +5.01%Petra Diamonds Ltd.(DI) (PDL) 127.50p +4.51%Kenmare Resources (KMR) 31.25p +3.86%Ted Baker (TED) 1,350.00p +3.85%Bovis Homes Group (BVS) 751.00p +3.16%Ladbrokes (LAD) 228.00p +3.03%Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 88.90p +2.95%Bellway (BWY) 1,227.00p +2.94%WH Smith (SMWH) 748.50p +2.89%Ashmore Group (ASHM) 354.30p +2.84%FTSE 250 - FallersKazakhmys (KAZ) 405.30p -8.63%Savills (SVS) 534.50p -7.20%COLT Group SA (COLT) 126.50p -4.17%Alent (ALNT) 376.80p -3.36%St. Modwen Properties (SMP) 252.00p -3.00%Synergy Health (SYR) 1,030.00p -2.74%Paragon Group Of Companies (PAG) 329.30p -2.63%Devro (DVO) 357.60p -2.59%African Barrick Gold (ABG) 203.40p -2.54%Pace (PIC) 238.60p -2.45%BC