London midday: Miners drive Footsie higher

1st Apr 2010 11:59

Resource stocks drove Footsie higher this morning ahead of the Easter break as commodity prices advance.Manufacturing activity has accelerated in China, while confidence in the Japanese manufacturing sector also improved.Xstrata, Randgold Resources, Rio Tinto and Vedanta Resources are the best performers in the mining sector. Oil explorer Cairn Energy is also wanted. Broker Citi has retained a 'Buy' rating on BT after yesterday's Pay TV review by Ofcom. The broker says the outcome of the review is something of a disappointment compared to the stance of OFCOM's third consultation document. But it establishes the principle of intervention to curb Sky's market power in premium TV and allows BT to price the sports channels flexibly which should give BT Vision an important boost.Tullow Oil announced that the Likonde-1 well, onshore Tanzania, has encountered thick sands with hydrocarbon shows. The well, which is now being plugged and abandoned, is the first of a two-well programme within the prospective Ruvuma delta region. Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) has agreed to buy the natural gas assets and infrastructure assets of Hess in three regions of the North Sea for $423m.Gartmore continues to recover after the firm indicated that it suspended fund manager Guillaume Rambourg after he breached internal rules by ordering dealing desks to use more than a dozen favoured brokers for share trades.Retail-related stocks are in focus. The cold snap in the early part of the year and tougher comparatives contributed to a drop in fourth quarter like for like (LFL) sales at baby products retailer Mothercare. On the positive side, the international division pepped up the group's trading performance in the 11 weeks ended 27 March with a 19.3% jump in overseas retail sales. The snow failed to dent growth at cash and carry group Booker, which saw sales rise in the quarter to March 26 as its customers braved the wintery weather of much of the period to stock up on supplies. Sales rose by 3.8% from the same period the previous year or by 3.6% on a like-for-like basis (excluding the impact of new openings). Furniture and clothing retailer Laura Ashley said customer confidence is returning but is tempered with a degree of caution as it posted a 3% rise in full year group sales. Total group sales rose to £268.4m for the 52 weeks to 30 January from £260.5m the same time a year before. Total UK retail sales were up 3.6% to £243.6m while like-for-like sales advanced 3.5%.Residential property investor Grainger has acquired PHA Limited, which owns 162 homes in Devon, for £15.3m. The properties, comprising 146 houses and 16 flats, were built in the 1950s and 1960s.Engineer Hamworthy expects to hit targets even though it has seen no improvement in the orders from the shipping business. "The group continues to trade in line with expectations, achieving a high profit-to-cash conversion and maintains a strong balance sheet. It remains confident of meeting full year expectations for the year ended 31 March 2010," the statement said.Pharmaceutical company BTG said it anticipates results for the year ended 31 March to be ahead of analyst consensus expectations. The firm sees revenues in excess of £95m and cash and cash equivalents of over £75m at 31 March.Restaurant chain Prezzo said it was confident of delivering a positive outcome for the year ahead as it reported a 12% rise in full-year pre-tax profits. Adjusted pre-tax profit increased to £12.9m in the 52 weeks ended 27 December compared with £11.5m last time. Revenue was up 6% to £91m.