London open: Poor start for blue chips

7th Dec 2009 08:45

UK shares have given ground in early dealings after a mixed performance in the US on Friday. Miners are under pressure with the improvement in the dollar as the better than expected US non-farm payroll figure has sparked speculation that the US could start to tighten monetary policy sooner than predicted. Xstrata, ENRC and Randgold are the worst hit.Private equity group Carlyle has made a bid for waste management specialist Shanks Group. The original offer of 135p cash per share has been rejected with board apparently holding out for at least 150p.Cadbury said it will publish its formal response to the unwelcome bid from Kraft Foods on 14 December. The defence is likely to highlight the value of its brands. Electricity provider Scottish & Southern Energy blasted the final price control proposals from industry regulator Ofgem. The company said it will have to reassess its appetite for further investment in electricity distribution and transmission assets after digesting the final proposals for the electricity distribution price control for the five years from 1 April 2010. Ofgem will alow prices to rise by 5.6% per year, £4.30, on average.Engineer Renishaw said it expects first half and full year results to remain unchanged from previous guidance in October as the group's performance continues to improve. The group, which sells high-end engineering products such as calibration and neurological equipment, confirmed in September that a surge in orders meant that it could relax the 20% voluntary reduction in salaries that had been brought in at the start of 2009.