London close: Stocks slip as growth concerns dampen sentiment

14th Feb 2013 16:30

The FTSE 100 had picked up off its intraday low by the end of the session on Thursday, but a barrage of worse-than-expected economic growth figures from across the globe ensured that markets remained in negative territory.Buying picked up slightly in afternoon trade after initial US jobless claims dropped by 27,000 to 341,000 last week, well below the 360,000 expected.Markets dented by weak GDP in Japan and EurozoneOvernight, it was announced that Japanese gross domestic product (GDP) contracted by 0.1% in the fourth quarter, down 0.4% on an annualised basis. The consensus estimate was for 0.4% GDP growth. Fourth-quarter GDP in the Eurozone also failed to live up to market expectations as sharper-than-expected contractions was registered in France, Italy and even economic powerhouse Germany, which saw GDP decrease by 0.6% quarter-on-quarter (q/q).The single-currency region saw its economy contract by 0.6% q/q in the final three months of 2012, worse than the 0.4% GDP decline expected. This compares with the smaller 0.1% contraction registered in the third quarter.Concerning the Eurozone figures, market analyst Craig Erlam from Alpari said: "Just as things were starting to look up in the region, with surveys suggesting that the downturn had bottomed out in most economies, fourth-quarter GDP figures brought us back to reality with a bang."Also weighing on sentiment today was the European Central Bank monthly report, in which the Bank's survey of professional forecasters found that economists had lowered their growth projections and revised upwards their unemployment forecasts.FTSE 100: AMEC drops on cautious outlookEngineering and project management group AMEC may have hiked its dividend by a fifth after beating forecasts in 2012, but shares suffered heavy falls after the company warned of more modest growth this year.Pharmaceuticals company Shire took a hit after saying that operating income fell 14% as it revealed that sales of its Adderall XR product had dropped 19%. Power systems group Rolls-Royce was a high riser after its full-year results, in which it delivered 8.0% growth in underlying revenue and a 24% increase in underlying profits. In spite of the 16% rise in 2013 so far, analysts at Prime Markets said: "With the order book showing a healthy premium over last year [...] there is little to prevent shares in the aero engineer accelerating higher."Asset management firm Aberdeen was also higher after buying sector peer Artio Global Investors for $175m. Canaccord Genuity upgraded the stock to 'buy' this morning "given the earnings per share expansion from current acquisitions".After an earlier rise following its full-year results, mining group Rio Tinto tracked the market lower in mid-morning trade. The company announced that it swung to its first-ever full-year loss in 2012, dragged down by impairments against its aluminium and Mozambique coal assets. However, on an adjusted basis, profits still came in ahead of consensus forecasts.Outsourcing group Capita was lower after buying Northgate Managed Services, a cloud-based infrastructure solutions and specialist managed services, for £65m.Cruise operator Carnival continued to suffer as one of its vessels was slowly towed ashore following an on-board fire which wiped out much of the ship's power.FTSE 250: Bumi falls as infighting continues ahead of voteBumi plc shares tumbled as co-founders of the coal miner financier Nathanial Rothschild and the Bakrie Group continued to butt heads over fate of the business. Shareholders are meeting next Thursday to vote on a proposal by Rothschild to replace members of the board. Part-owned PT Bumi Resources has requested a takeover panel to expedite inquiry into the creation of Bumi plc. Soft drinks peers Britvic and AG Barr were in the red this morning after announcing late yesterday afternoon that the Office of Fair Trading has referred the tie-up to the Competition Commission.Meanwhile, SVG Capital got a boost after Oriel Securities shifted its target price on the stock from 360p to 370p, and kept its 'buy' recommendation on the stock.FTSE 100 - RisersRolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,017.00p +3.30%Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 426.40p +2.50%Unilever (ULVR) 2,583.00p +1.49%BHP Billiton (BLT) 2,225.00p +1.46%Diageo (DGE) 1,929.50p +1.26%Next (NXT) 4,182.00p +1.21%International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 226.90p +0.84%Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,727.50p +0.70%Aggreko (AGK) 1,641.00p +0.67%Resolution Ltd. (RSL) 263.50p +0.65%FTSE 100 - FallersAmec (AMEC) 1,042.00p -7.30%Shire Plc (SHP) 2,027.00p -5.50%Polymetal International (POLY) 1,022.00p -3.77%Carnival (CCL) 2,500.00p -2.91%Evraz (EVR) 293.10p -2.53%Vodafone Group (VOD) 167.55p -2.39%Barclays (BARC) 319.00p -2.15%Fresnillo (FRES) 1,655.00p -2.01%Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 1,622.00p -1.99%Kazakhmys (KAZ) 749.00p -1.96%FTSE 250 - RisersSVG Capital (SVI) 368.40p +6.23%Dialight (DIA) 1,150.00p +4.36%African Barrick Gold (ABG) 309.10p +2.35%Man Group (EMG) 111.10p +2.30%Fenner (FENR) 418.80p +2.15%SIG (SHI) 139.50p +1.82%Phoenix Group Holdings (DI) (PHNX) 640.00p +1.59%Greggs (GRG) 486.00p +1.52%3i Group (III) 298.90p +1.43%Fidessa Group (FDSA) 1,820.00p +1.11%FTSE 250 - FallersBumi (BUMI) 406.00p -8.72%Britvic (BVIC) 390.00p -7.14%Savills (SVS) 534.50p -5.98%Synergy Health (SYR) 1,037.00p -4.60%Sports Direct International (SPD) 420.50p -4.43%Computacenter (CCC) 475.00p -4.14%Soco International (SIA) 365.90p -3.91%Jupiter Fund Management (JUP) 334.70p -3.74%Kenmare Resources (KMR) 36.00p -3.49%Halfords Group (HFD) 330.20p -3.17%BC