London open: Stocks slip ahead of Eurogroup meeting

9th Jul 2012 08:55

- Chinese inflation data increases stimulus speculation- Eurogroup to meet this afternoon- Spanish yields on the upThe FTSE 100 opened slightly lower on Monday morning on the back of economic data from Asia and ahead of a crucial Eurogroup meeting later today."Overall for the start of the new trading week volume is expected moderate at best, with equity markets remaining vulnerable to further sell-offs in light of the dire economic situation in Europe with no major improvement likely in the near future," said Marcus Huber from ETX Capital.Investors will still be digesting Friday's worse-than-expected employment report in the US. Meanwhile, 10-year bond yields in Spain were up above the key 7% level this morning, trading 12.3 basis points higher at 7.077%.Chinese consumer inflation hit its lowest level in almost two and half years, according to the latest figures from the National Bureau of Statistics. The consumer price index rose by 2.2% year-on-year in June, down from 3% in May.Huber said that the data certainly gives China room to implement additional stimulus measures. "Although any new measures might not be imminent as China only lowered interest rates last week and might want to wait for further economic data before making any final decision on potential stimulus," he said.Eurozone finance ministers, otherwise known as the Eurogroup, are to meet this afternoon to follow up on the decisions made at the EU summit. Also in focus will be European Central Bank President Mario Draghi who will speak about economic and monetary affairs to European parliament.Miners under pressure early onMining peers Anglo American, Evraz, Xstrata and Randgold headed lower early on Miners will be looking ahead to aluminium giant Alcoa kicking off the new earnings season after the US close this evening. The focus will likely be the group's outlook amidst a slowdown in China and the ongoing debt crisis in Europe.Head coal and coke producer New World Resources was a heavy faller after Bank of America Merrill Lynch downgraded its rating on the stock to 'underperform'. Kenmare Resources, Centamin and Aquarius Platinum was also heavy fallers.Publishing group Reed Elsevier edged higher on the back of positive broker commentary. Nomura maintained its 'buy' rating on the stock today, while Citigroup raised its target price from 535p to 605p.FTSE 250 recruitment firm Michael Page dropped after saying it had seen a tough first half and expects more of the same in the third quarter.House builder Bovis Homes fell despite saying that its first half was in line with expectations with net private reservations sharply higher. Internet gambling firm Betfair was out of favour after warning that it is considering legal action against Cyprus after the country banned online casinos and exchange betting.Elsewhere, AIM-listed sporting goods retailer JJB Sports plummeted after warning that sales have fallen short of forecasts since its last update.FTSE 100 - RisersStandard Chartered (STAN) 1,437.00p +0.70%Reed Elsevier (REL) 519.50p +0.68%Meggitt (MGGT) 396.10p +0.66%CRH (CRH) 1,155.00p +0.35%BAE Systems (BA.) 293.90p +0.34%Tesco (TSCO) 317.90p +0.25%SSE (SSE) 1,419.00p +0.21%Babcock International Group (BAB) 863.50p +0.17%Centrica (CNA) 319.60p +0.16%Tate & Lyle (TATE) 672.50p +0.15%FTSE 100 - FallersEvraz (EVR) 241.00p -2.11%Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,265.00p -1.86%Xstrata (XTA) 819.00p -1.80%Anglo American (AAL) 2,066.50p -1.78%Aviva (AV.) 283.00p -1.74%IMI (IMI) 823.50p -1.73%Associated British Foods (ABF) 1,270.00p -1.70%Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 5,850.00p -1.60%ARM Holdings (ARM) 501.00p -1.57%Kazakhmys (KAZ) 714.50p -1.45%FTSE 250 - RisersAvocet Mining (AVM) 65.50p +3.97%Euromoney Institutional Investor (ERM) 783.50p +2.42%Dechra Pharmaceuticals (DPH) 497.10p +2.26%Savills (SVS) 361.60p +1.74%Dunelm Group (DNLM) 559.50p +1.73%NMC Health (NMC) 203.30p +1.65%Soco International (SIA) 336.90p +1.60%BH Macro Ltd. EUR Shares (BHME) € 18.90 +1.56%Brown (N.) Group (BWNG) 263.80p +1.46%BH Global Ltd. GBP Shares (BHGG) 1,150.00p +1.32%FTSE 250 - FallersCentamin (DI) (CEY) 64.25p -12.53%New World Resources A Shares (NWR) 329.00p -8.10%Kenmare Resources (KMR) 35.50p -7.04%Aquarius Platinum Ltd. (AQP) 43.16p -6.40%Michael Page International (MPI) 348.60p -4.39%Betfair Group (BET) 723.00p -4.37%Hays (HAS) 69.90p -4.05%Talvivaara Mining Company (TALV) 136.80p -3.12%Carpetright (CPR) 640.00p -2.88%JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 720.00p -2.70%BC