London open: Blue chips start well

9th Jun 2009 08:47

Last night's late recovery in Wall Street has given London a modest boost this morning.Lloyds is going well on reports it is to axe a further 1,500 jobs and close the branch network of Cheltenham & Gloucester. Miners are also in demand again following yesterday's rally in the US. Vedanta and Antofagasta lead the way. Heritage Oil is merging with Turkish exploration and production group Genel to create an oil company big enough to join London's FTSE 100 index. Bus and train operator Go-Ahead's Govia joint venture has retained its South Central rail franchise for another five years ten months, it confirmed today. The UK firm, which owns 65% of the business, says the Department for Transport (DfT) has decided to keep it on until 25 July 2015. Spread betting firm IG Index expects to post a strong rise in profits for the 12 months to March 31 after a good finish to the year. Adjusted pre-tax profits should come in at £125m, compared with £98m the previous year, on revenues that climb to £257m from £184m. The firm said year-on-year organic revenue growth was 18% in the final quarter, compared with 12% over the third quarter, despite lower market volatility.GlaxoSmithKline has entered into an agreement with Chinese gene engineering drug group Shenzhen Neptunus Interlong Bio-Technique to develop and manufacture influenza vaccines for China. Punch Taverns has further rationalised its pub portfolio with the disposal of 11 outlets to rival Greene King for £30.4m cash. The pubs to be sold are freehold outlets located in central London, the south east of England and Scotland. The consideration will be satisfied in cash. London black cab maker Manganese Bronze is to raise £9.4m through a placing at 187p to speed up the development of its international operations and a new taxi engine. The firm also warned that overall vehicles sales for the four months to the end of April are down 18.7% to 699 vehicles versus 860 vehicles in the comparable period last year.