London open: FTSE 100 below 6,000 as Libya casts shadow

22nd Feb 2011 08:24

The FTSE 100 is back below 6,000 points as the ongoing turmoil in Lybia continues to jangle traders' nerves.Oil prices are higher again, not good news for British Airways owner IAG, which is one of today's notable fallers. The high gold price as investors seek a safe haven has lifted African Barrick Gold, while silver producer Fresnillo is also going well.Other miners are lower, including BHP Billiton. The firm is usually thought of as a miner but it has oil and gas assets too, and it bolstered those Tuesday with the acquisition of Chesapeake Energy's Fayetteville shale assets. Higher oil prices won't worry coal-fired power station operator Drax, though the chairman, Gordon Horsfield, did warn of "pressure on coal generation margins due to today's commodity market conditions," as he unveiled forecast-busting 2010 earnings. The shares are up today.Drax's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation in 2010 totalled £391m, up from £355m last year, and ahead of market expectations of £384m. Total revenue was comfortably ahead of market expectations at £1,648.4m, up from $1,475.8m; the market had pencilled in a figure of £1,426m.Specialist business publisher and trade events group Informa posted a sharp rise in 2010 despite flat revenues as it adjusted to the tough climate by consolidating publications, getting rid of marginal ones and reducing the scale of some events. Pre-tax profits rose to £125m from £96.5m the previous year on revenues that rose to £1.226bn from £1.221bn.The global economic recovery helped animal breeding business Genus lift revenues and profits in the half year to 31 December. The firm posted a pre-tax profit of £19.1m, up from £15.5m over the same period the previous year, on revenues that climbed to £153.2m from £134.9m.Similarly, the global recovery helped speciality chemicals group Croda International more than double pre-tax profits in the year to 31 December, sparking a strong reaction from the shares today. Pre-tax profits jumped to £192m from £91m the previous year on revenues that rose to £1bn from £828m.