London midday: FTSE 100 inching towards 6,000 points

1st Jul 2011 12:21

The 6,000 point mark is in sight now as the top share index adds to yesterday's gains. That said, there is little in the way of excitement with yesterday's flood of company results slowing to a trickle.Pub group Greene King, which yesterday reported a big rise in profits but also reported volatile trading since the year end, sending the shares lower, has won back some losses. However, Hovis bread maker Premier Foods suffers more declines after yesterday's profit warning.Turning to today's news, water and waste management group Northumbrian Water has confirmed that it received a proposal about an offer from the Hong Kong infrastructure group Cheung Kong. The statement comes after Cheung Kong said on Monday that it was in the initial stages of sizing up an offer for the north-east England-based utility.Plant-based sweetener-maker Pure Circle has signed a global distribution agreement with the world's biggest fragrance and flavour company Firmenich. Under the agreement Switzerland-based Firmenich will have exclusive rights over NSF-02, a flavour modifier developed by Pure Circle to be used in combination with its sweeteners.Astra-Zeneca, the FTSE-100 pharmaceuticals firm, has won approval to sell its drug Nexium in Japan. The drug helps in the treatment of acid related conditions, including peptic ulcer disease.Budget airlines operator Flybe Group takes off after saying that, along with its newly formed joint venture partner Finnair, it will acquire Finnish Commuter Airlines for €25m (£22.5m). FTSE 100 - RisersICAP (IAP) 491.30p +3.87%ITV (ITV) 73.65p +3.01%Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 39.50p +2.70%Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 50.27p +2.59%Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,676.50p +2.35%Barclays (BARC) 262.10p +2.20%Eurasian Natural Resources Corp. (ENRC) 797.50p +2.05%Land Securities Group (LAND) 867.50p +1.76%Rexam (REX) 389.20p +1.67%Man Group (EMG) 240.70p +1.56%FTSE 100 - FallersCapita Group (CPI) 700.50p -2.10%Fresnillo (FRES) 1,381.00p -1.50%Serco Group (SRP) 544.50p -1.45%Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 5,180.00p -1.43%Associated British Foods (ABF) 1,070.00p -1.20%Next (NXT) 2,301.00p -1.03%Intertek Group (ITRK) 1,954.00p -0.96%Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 295.20p -0.84%BT Group (BT.A) 199.80p -0.84%Glencore International (GLEN) 487.00p -0.81%FTSE 250 - RisersQinetiQ Group (QQ.) 127.20p +5.39%JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 970.00p +4.30%Telecom Plus (TEP) 690.00p +3.76%St James's Place (STJ) 351.50p +3.38%SThree (STHR) 410.00p +3.27%Perform Group (PER) 213.70p +3.19%Jupiter Fund Management (JUP) 260.40p +2.97%Domino's Pizza UK & IRL (DOM) 415.60p +2.95%Imagination Technologies Group (IMG) 388.00p +2.89%Rightmove (RMV) 1,226.00p +2.85%FTSE 250 - FallersPremier Foods (PFD) 18.28p -3.89%Regus (RGU) 108.30p -2.17%London Stock Exchange Group (LSE) 1,038.00p -2.17%Anglo Pacific Group (APF) 312.80p -2.04%Shanks Group (SKS) 125.20p -2.03%ITE Group (ITE) 214.00p -1.97%Talvivaara Mining Company (TALV) 456.90p -1.74%Hochschild Mining (HOC) 452.60p -1.52%Edinburgh Dragon Trust (EFM) 243.70p -1.46%Stobart Group Ltd. (STOB) 143.10p -1.31%