London open: Early gains for Footsie

14th Jul 2009 08:41

London's blue chips have made early gains after the hundred-point plus surge on Wall St overnight. Miners are leading the way with Fresnillo, Lonmin, Xstrata and Rio Tinto all going well. Defensive stalwarts are the weak spots with Diageo, Imperial Tobacco and Reckitt Benckiser all lower.Engineering conglomerate Melrose is ahead on an upbeat trading statement. Trading is in line with expectations for the full year and said cash generation during the first six months of 2009 has been 'excellent'. Soft drinks maker Britvic's profits this year will beat the top end of market forecast as demand in the UK has soared with the hot weather. So strong are the numbers, Britvic brought forward today's trading update by ten days. Iron ore firm Ferrexpo produced at full capacity and traded profitably in the second quarter. Total pellet production in the second quarter rose by 21.1% compared with the previous three month period and was up by 3.8% compared to the equivalent quarter last year.Construction and regeneration group Morgan Sindall has won a £71m contract with plane maker Airbus to build a wing assembly factory. The factory is expected to be completed by October 2010.Flooring group Headlam continues to struggle in tough market conditions with first half sales to June down by 8.2%, a slight improvement on earlier in the year. Accountancy services group Tenon expects underlying full-year profits to be in line with forecasts and said its prospects for the next financial year are 'encouraging.' The group said excellent growth has been generated in its Recovery and related service lines, with revenue ahead by more than 30% over the prior year.