London midday: Old Mutual and miners provide a lift

15th Dec 2011 11:46

The Footsie held on to gains by lunchtime, breaking through the 5,400 level, with strong gains for Old Mutual and the miners lifted London's blue chip index 0.6% higher.In domestic news, the volume of UK retail sales fell by 0.4% in November compared to the month before, according to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). However, sales were up 0.7% over the quarter (0.7% on year), the strongest performance since August 2010. The consensus estimate had been for a reading of -0.4% on month (0.3% on year) In other news, early indicators show the Eurozone suffered its worst quarter for two and a half years in the last three months of 2011. A 'flash estimate' of the December Purchasing Managers Index by Markit suggests that the region's economy is likely to have contracted by 0.6%. The figures reinforced, yet again, the economic divisions within the 17-country bloc, with Germany seeing modest growth of output in December, reversing the decline seen in November. OLD MUTUAL SURGES AFTER DISPOSALSavings and insurance group Old Mutual rocketed higher early on after announcing that it is to sell its Nordic business Skandia AB for £2.1bn in an effort to "reduce complexity" and pay down debt. Shares were 10% higher at lunchtime.The deal, which still needs regulatory and shareholder approval, is expected to complete during the first quarter of 2012. "The creation of a strong and efficient Nordic champion represents a valuable opportunity for Old Mutual's shareholders and Skandia Liv's policyholders, said Group Chief Executive Julian Roberts. Insurance peers Standard Life, Prudential and Admiral were all making good gains. Resolution however, led the fallers, losing 3%.Miners were rising strongly following yesterday's sell-off when metals prices tumbled between 5-7%. Vedanta Resources, Xstrata and Fresnillo were notable performers today.Oil stocks fell following yesterday's +3% tumble in the price of Brent crude. The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries met in Vienna yesterday and decided to maintain current production levels at 30m barrels per day. "The Conference also agreed that Member Countries would, if necessary, take steps (including voluntary downward adjustments of output) to ensure market balance and reasonable price levels." Nevertheless, Brent was recovering today, trading up 0.6% higher at $105.66 at midday. AMEC, BG Group and Tullow Oil were out of favour.Industrial engineer Weir rose after completing the acquisition of wellhead solutions provider Seaboard Holdings for $675m. FTSE 250: INTL PERSONAL FINANCE, WOOD GROUP DROPFTSE 250 doorstep lending firm International Personal Finance (IPF) has revealed that the global economic volatility has taken its toll on the firm's profit and loss account in 2011. The group highlights the significant unpredictably in foreign exchange (FX) markets over the year and notes a weakening of its trading currencies against the sterling. As such, IPF current FX rates will have a 14% negative impact on reported profits. Shares in oilfield support services giant Wood Group dropped after the firm admitted international performance for the year ended 31 December will be below expectations. The fall comes as a result of losses on two Wood Group Production Facilities contracts, which the firm was keen to emphasise have been targeted for an improved performance in 2012. Ultra Electronics, the high-tech defence firm, was trading lower after UBS downgraded the stock from neural to sell, warning that the group is not immune to defence budget cuts in the US.Travel group Thomas Cook was the top rise on the FTSE 250, recovering after its full-year results disappointed yesterday. NOTABLE MOVERSShares in Oxford Biomedica slumped to a 52-week low after a disappointing set of test results for ProSavin, its treatment for Parkinson's diseaseFluid technology solutions developer Pursuit Dynamics (PDX) plummeted more than 55% after the firm reported soaring pre-tax losses for the year ended 30 September and Chief Executive Officer Roel Pieper quit. Acta, an Italian clean energy company listed on AIM, says it will receive more grant money than originally thought. In an announcement today the firm claims a European Union grant programme called LIFE+ will now pay out €450,000 rather than €330,000 as previously indicated. BCFTSE 100 - RisersOld Mutual (OML) 122.10p +10.00%Vedanta Resources (VED) 1,100.00p +3.29%Xstrata (XTA) 966.80p +3.02%Weir Group (WEIR) 1,916.00p +2.57%Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 19.95p +2.31%Capital Shopping Centres Group (CSCG) 300.80p +2.04%Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 24.50p +1.81%Standard Life (SL.) 196.90p +1.81%Prudential (PRU) 611.00p +1.75%Admiral Group (ADM) 800.00p +1.65%FTSE 100 - FallersResolution Ltd. (RSL) 243.60p -2.91%Amec (AMEC) 875.00p -1.02%BG Group (BG.) 1,319.50p -0.64%Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 1,750.00p -0.51%Diageo (DGE) 1,360.50p -0.51%Tate & Lyle (TATE) 674.50p -0.44%Capita Group (CPI) 612.00p -0.41%Tullow Oil (TLW) 1,323.00p -0.38%Carnival (CCL) 2,126.00p -0.37%Meggitt (MGGT) 338.40p -0.32%FTSE 250 - RisersThomas Cook Group (TCG) 15.29p +5.30%Premier Foods (PFD) 6.10p +4.90%Morgan Crucible Co (MGCR) 254.40p +4.26%Bwin.party Digital Entertainment (BPTY) 134.60p +4.10%Imagination Technologies Group (IMG) 501.50p +3.64%Regus (RGU) 80.60p +3.60%Hays (HAS) 60.70p +3.14%Go-Ahead Group (GOG) 1,346.00p +3.14%Micro Focus International (MCRO) 373.30p +2.81%Anglo Pacific Group (APF) 265.50p +2.67%FTSE 250 - FallersInternational Personal Finance (IPF) 167.00p -8.14%Wood Group (John) (WG.) 608.00p -4.40%Exillon Energy (EXI) 241.70p -3.78%Daejan Holdings (DJAN) 2,666.00p -3.72%JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 595.50p -3.25%Ocado Group (OCDO) 71.70p -3.17%Perform Group (PER) 200.80p -3.00%COLT Group SA (COLT) 84.00p -2.95%Premier Farnell (PFL) 174.70p -2.84%Premier Oil (PMO) 358.90p -2.21%