London midday: AB Foods and RSA lead markets higher

5th Feb 2014 11:21

- Upside limited after UK, Eurozone data disappoints- Investors cautious ahead of US data, policy decisions- AB Foods rises, RSA appoints Hester as CEO- Hargreaves Lansdown drops after H1 resultstechMARK 2,756.02 +0.36%FTSE 100 6,465.16 +0.25%FTSE 250 15,589.91 +0.32%UK markets snapped a five-day losing streak on Wednesday morning, but gains were capped by some disappointing economic data and nervousness ahead of a number of risk events over the coming days.Associated British Foods was leading the gains on London's benchmark index after positive comments from analysts, while RSA Insurance rose after a boardroom change; Hargreaves Lansdown, however, fell sharply after its first-half results.The FTSE 100 was trading 0.25% higher at 6,465 by around midday - its first day in positive territory since January 28th.Economic data disappoints, risk events aheadThe UK services purchasing managers' index (PMI) eased from 58.8 in December to 58.3 last month, surprising analysts who had expected a slight pick-up to 59.The final reading of the Eurozone composite PMI was revised to 52.9 in January, up from 52.1 the previous month but below the preliminary estimate of 53.2.Eurozone retail sales dropped by 1.6% in December, reversing after a revised 0.9% increase the month before; the consensus forecast was for a 0.7% decline.This afternoon will see the release of the ADP employment report in the States with labour-market data again under close inspection in the aftermath of the Federal Reserve's decision last week to continue tapering its stimulus programme. The official non-farm payrolls figure is due out on Friday.Traders will be on guard against the possibility of weather induced surprises.Meanwhile, tomorrow will see monetary policy decisions from both the Bank of England and the European Central Bank (ECB), with the latter likely to garner the most attention given last week's unexpected dip in inflation in the Eurozone.AB Foods and RSA gain, Hargreaves Lansdown dropsAB Foods was extending gains this morning after analysts at Morgan Stanley said yesterday that the market was "fundamentally mispricing" its Primark retail chain.RSA Insurance rose strongly after appointing former RBS frontman Stephen Hester as its new Chief Executive Officer. Hester, credited with turning around RBS after the financial crisis, will take the helm at the troubled insurance group with immediate effect.Fund manager and brokerage firm Hargreaves Lansdown underwhelmed with record first-half revenues and profits this morning as the stock retreated after its recent strong run. The share price, which hit a record high last month, has nearly doubled since the start of 2013. Financial stocks were broadly higher, including Shroders, Ashmore, Brewin Dolphin and Hiscox. Even interdealer broker ICAP edged higher despite reporting a 6% drop in third-quarter revenue due to a challenging market. Home emergency insurer HomeServe was also higher after saying it expects full-year adjusted profits to be in line with market expectations.A handful of stocks were trading lower after going ex-dividend, including Victrex, Unilever and Stagecoach.FTSE 100 - RisersAssociated British Foods (ABF) 2,866.00p +3.77%RSA Insurance Group (RSA) 102.60p +3.64%Shire Plc (SHP) 3,085.00p +2.29%ARM Holdings (ARM) 895.00p +2.29%British Sky Broadcasting Group (BSY) 892.50p +1.77%Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 353.20p +1.70%Persimmon (PSN) 1,304.00p +1.32%William Hill (WMH) 338.90p +1.25%Schroders (SDR) 2,453.00p +1.15%Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 399.10p +1.04%FTSE 100 - FallersHargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 1,409.00p -5.88%Tate & Lyle (TATE) 761.00p -1.49%Smiths Group (SMIN) 1,379.00p -1.22%Sage Group (SGE) 410.30p -1.08%IMI (IMI) 1,448.00p -0.89%Unilever (ULVR) 2,309.00p -0.82%Sports Direct International (SPD) 676.50p -0.73%Bunzl (BNZL) 1,360.00p -0.66%Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 461.00p -0.65%Prudential (PRU) 1,235.00p -0.56%FTSE 250 - RisersAshmore Group (ASHM) 331.70p +4.44%Essar Energy (ESSR) 56.50p +3.96%Balfour Beatty (BBY) 295.10p +3.95%Hiscox Ltd (HSX) 647.50p +3.68%Homeserve (HSV) 318.00p +3.58%Foxtons Group (FOXT) 364.40p +3.49%Thomas Cook Group (TCG) 180.30p +3.32%Enterprise Inns (ETI) 164.70p +3.20%African Barrick Gold (ABG) 226.90p +3.14%Centamin (DI) (CEY) 46.61p +3.03%FTSE 250 - FallersRiverstone Energy Limited (RSE) 886.50p -3.11%Victrex plc (VCT) 1,893.00p -2.77%Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 1,586.00p -2.64%Electrocomponents (ECM) 246.50p -2.34%Renishaw (RSW) 1,836.00p -2.24%Rotork (ROR) 2,399.00p -2.20%Premier Oil (PMO) 286.60p -1.55%Lancashire Holdings Limited (LRE) 738.00p -1.47%De La Rue (DLAR) 749.00p -1.45%BBA Aviation (BBA) 312.60p -1.42%BC