London open: Stocks weighed down by Greece, Moody's

16th Feb 2012 08:35

- Greek bailout hit by more delays.- Moody's reviews ratings on 114 European financial institutions. - BAE Systems tumbles after results.London's blue chip index sank in early trading on Thursday, with just five stocks on the rise, as the Greek bailout faces fresh delays. Meanwhile, Moody's warned that it could downgrade financial institutions across the globe.Eurogroup President Jean-Claude Juncker said last night that Eurogroup leaders would make "all the necessary decisions" regarding a Greek bailout at a meeting on February 20th, following a conference call between Eurozone finance ministers and Greek politicians. There are reports that the 'Troika' could opt to split the rescue package into separate instalments, with the aim of avoiding a Greek default while at the same time holding out for the greater political clarity which might be achieved following the elections. Ratings agency Moody's says that it is reviewing the ratings of no less than 114 financial institutions across Europe and 17 global entities as the sovereign debt crisis continues to take its toll. The credit ratings agency aptly points out that the "adverse and prolonged" impact of the euro area crisis makes the operating environment "very difficult" for European banks. It also notes that the recent downgrade of nine European sovereigns last Monday continues to put pressure on the institutions' creditworthiness.In domestic news, consumer confidence recovered at the start of 2012, to stand at its best level since last August, driven by a noticeable improvement in public's outlook for the economy, according to Nationwide. Economists, however, warn that any sustained improvement will take time.BAE SYSTEMS DROPS AFTER FULL-YEAR RESULTSBAE Systems, the FTSE 100 defence contractor, saw headline sales fall by 14% in the 12 months ended December 31st and said that "little sales growth" is expected for 2012 in the current market conditions. Shares dropped 3% in early trading.Financials were unsurprisingly out of favour today after Moody's dampened sentiment in the global banking sector. Lloyds, Barclays, HSBC and Royal Bank of Scotland were among the stocks in the red.Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton were also lower after iron ore prices fell 1.6% yesterday. This was the seventh straight day of declines in prices, the longest losing streak in months.Oil and gas market services group Petrofac was one of the few risers after acquiring UK-based subsea pipeline consulting and engineering services firm KW Limited for an undisclosed sum. It will become part of Petrofac's Engineering & Consulting Services division.Information solutions provider Reed Elsevier was higher after seeing underlying revenues increase 2% in 2011, with all five business areas contributing to growth except the Exhibitions division, which was held back by biennial cycling. DIY retailer Kingfisher saw sales growth in all three of its geographic regions in the 13 weeks to January 28th, though, as expected, like-for-like sales in the UK and Ireland were lower than the year before. Shares nudged lower.MINERS TANK ON THE FTSE 250Talvivaara Mining tumbled nearly 8% as investors digested a series of announcements. The firm reported a full-year improvement in net sales and profits, while achieving record production levels of nickel and zinc in the fourth quarter. However, investors may be shaken by the revelation that Chief Executive Officer Pekka Perä is to step down from day-to-day management and become the Executive Chairman. The group also announced its intention of placing over 24.5m new ordinary shares (10% of the number of existing shares).Mining peer African Barrick Gold also sank after seeing attributable gold sales fall 3% in 2011. Nevertheless, revenue jumped 25% to $1,218m, while EBITDA jumped 30%.Bookie Ladbrokes delivered operating profit, excluding the volatile impact of high rollers, just about in the top half of the range of market forecasts in 2011, on the back of continued strong performance from gaming machines in its shops. Nevertheless, the stock dipped into the red early on.Vodafone's takeover target Cable and Wireless Worldwide (CWW) says its outlook for full year 2011/12 is unchanged, with the firm also revealing written commitments for a £260m refinancing facility. Both stocks were out of favour.BCFTSE 100 - RisersAssociated British Foods (ABF) 1,222.00p +0.33%Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 1,554.00p +0.13%BP (BP.) 488.00p +0.12%Reed Elsevier (REL) 534.50p +0.09%Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 3,568.00p +0.03%FTSE 100 - FallersBAE Systems (BA.) 323.00p -3.00%Essar Energy (ESSR) 122.70p -2.54%Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 33.12p -2.37%International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (IAG) 169.90p -1.91%Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,302.00p -1.88%Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,424.00p -1.86%Barclays (BARC) 237.15p -1.86%Rio Tinto (RIO) 3,616.50p -1.81%ARM Holdings (ARM) 580.00p -1.78%IMI (IMI) 919.50p -1.76%FTSE 250 - RisersAllied Gold Mining (ALD) 122.90p +0.99%BH Macro Ltd. EUR Shares (BHME) € 19.74 +0.71%Moneysupermarket.com Group (MONY) 122.00p +0.66%BH Macro Ltd. USD Shares (BHMU) 19.71 +0.66%Phoenix Group Holdings (DI) (PHNX) 568.00p +0.53%Spirit Pub Company (SPRT) 55.75p +0.45%RPS Group (RPS) 224.80p +0.27%Fenner (FENR) 459.40p +0.22%BH Macro Ltd. GBP Shares (BHMG) 2,027.00p +0.15%Telecom Plus (TEP) 648.50p +0.15%FTSE 250 - FallersTalvivaara Mining Company (TALV) 304.30p -7.65%African Barrick Gold (ABG) 490.00p -5.50%Halma (HLMA) 366.90p -3.75%Cable & Wireless Worldwide (CW.) 26.50p -3.25%Supergroup (SGP) 508.50p -2.77%Henderson Group (HGG) 120.90p -2.42%New World Resources A Shares (NWR) 499.10p -2.33%Cookson Group (CKSN) 610.00p -2.32%BH Global Ltd. USD Shares (BHGU) 11.47 -2.30%Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 43.21p -2.24%