London midday: Stocks gain as Germany approves Greek aid

30th Nov 2012 11:29

- Germany approves Greek aid- Eurozone jobless rate at record-high- Stocks rally but trade within narrow rangeAfter a subdued start, the FTSE 100 had pushed into positive territory by midday after German parliament approved the Greek rescue deal.The Bundestag voted with a large majority (463 for versus 100 against, 11 abstained) to push through the next Greek aid package which was approved by the Eurogroup on Monday.However, gains for UK markets were only modest as the focus remains firmly fixed on discussions about the US 'fiscal cliff'."Progress or the lack of, over US lawmakers reaching a deal dominate headlines and keeps the bulls and the bears fighting for control over direction," said market strategist Ishaq Siddiqi from ETX Capital.In spite of saying on Wednesday that he was "optimistic" about a deal being made on the 'fiscal cliff', US Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner quashed hopes yesterday by saying that "there is a real danger of going off the fiscal cliff" unless Democrats "get serious about real spending cuts".Siddiqi said: "This game of brinkmanship played in Washington dents the possibilities of a Santa Rally to end the year. Furthermore, market participants currently have little confidence in the ability of lawmakers to address impending crises swiftly and decisively, underlined by the slow progress by European policymakers to tackle the sovereign debt crisis."Limiting gains in London were jobless figures from Europe: Eurozone unemployment rose to a record 11.7% in October, from 11.6% in Septmeber. Meanwhile, inflation slowed by more than expected to 2.2%, a 23-month low.In domestic news, UK consumer confidence measured by GfK surged to an 18-month high in November, rising to -22 from -30 the month before. Consensus estimates were for no change. FTSE 100: RBS falls on India exit plansRoyal Bank of Scotland (RBS) fell after saying that it is no longer selling its Indian retail and commercial banking operations to HSBC. Instead, it will be winding down what was a profitable business. HSBC was registering decent gains today.Mining giant Rio Tinto was on the rise after yesterday's investor seminar announced aggressive open and capex cuts. Jefferies recommended to buy the stock this morning, saying that the group can deliver around 40% earnings per share growth from 2012 to 2015 "even if commodity prices do not increase from average 2012 levels as significant volume growth and cost cutting should lead to better unit margins and higher overall profitability for the company."Meanwhile, the mining sector was given a lift after industrial production figures from Japan beat forecasts overnight and the Japanese government approved a $10.7bn stimulus package.B&Q and Screwfix owner Kingfisher was under the weather after UBS lowered its rating for the stock from 'buy' to 'neutral', citing near-term risks. The broker said: "In most markets DIY demand remains depressed by a mix of low consumer confidence and weak housing markets, affecting big ticket and trade sales in particular. While the UK may show some stability next year if mortgage lending improves, there are no signs yet that Continental Europe will follow suit."In contrast, water supplier Pennon was higher after Citigroup upgraded the shares to 'neutral' and quality and safety testing group Intertek rose after Berenberg upped to stock to 'buy' and raised its target price from 2,710p to 3,340p.FTSE 250: Dixons to benefit from Comet's demiseElectrical retailer Dixons was performing well this morning after its CEO Sebastian James said that its Curry and PC World divisions haven't seen "much disruption" from the fire sale by bankrupt rival Comet. He expects the group to take a bigger market share on the back of Comet's demise. Dixons' first-half results yesterday beat expectations with its domestic business swinging to a profit fir the first time in five years.Coal and coke producer New World Resources was higher despite announcing that a 23-year-old worker died at its CSM Mine in the Czech Republic yesterday.FTSE 100 - RisersCapita (CPI) 775.00p +1.91%Whitbread (WTB) 2,420.00p +1.77%Weir Group (WEIR) 1,911.00p +1.70%GKN (GKN) 224.60p +1.68%IMI (IMI) 1,057.00p +1.63%BAE Systems (BA.) 331.80p +1.53%Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 270.70p +1.42%Meggitt (MGGT) 389.20p +1.25%Intertek Group (ITRK) 3,097.00p +1.24%HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 639.30p +1.22%FTSE 100 - FallersEvraz (EVR) 233.70p -1.77%Eurasian Natural Resources Corp. (ENRC) 271.20p -1.31%Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 295.30p -1.24%Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 741.50p -1.20%BT Group (BT.A) 231.30p -0.94%SABMiller (SAB) 2,825.50p -0.88%Resolution Ltd. (RSL) 236.00p -0.88%Schroders (SDR) 1,597.00p -0.68%Anglo American (AAL) 1,753.50p -0.60%ITV (ITV) 99.00p -0.60%FTSE 250 - RisersDixons Retail (DXNS) 27.19p +5.55%Man Group (EMG) 79.85p +4.31%Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 61.25p +3.38%Rank Group (RNK) 148.60p +3.19%Hunting (HTG) 819.50p +3.15%Soco International (SIA) 366.30p +2.78%Invensys (ISYS) 313.10p +2.66%Domino Printing Sciences (DNO) 594.00p +2.24%Interserve (IRV) 365.40p +2.24%Drax Group (DRX) 549.50p +2.23%FTSE 250 - FallersLonmin (LMI) 262.40p -3.39%Stobart Group Ltd. (STOB) 100.00p -3.01%Shanks Group (SKS) 78.85p -2.53%CSR (CSR) 356.80p -2.22%COLT Group SA (COLT) 99.65p -1.92%Micro Focus International (MCRO) 576.50p -1.62%NMC Health (NMC) 173.20p -1.59%Dunelm Group (DNLM) 617.50p -1.52%BTG (BTG) 360.30p -1.34%Perform Group (PER) 384.00p -1.34%BC