London pre-open: Footsie to regain 5,500

2nd Dec 2011 07:30

Having fallen below 5,500 yesterday the blue-chip index is set to move back above that level at the outset this morning, with City traders betting the FTSE 100 will open up around 29 points from yesterday's close of 5,489. Mining colossus Rio Tinto has given the green light to an additional $2.7bn capital investment to modernise its aluminium smelter in Kitimat, British Columbia. This new investment will allow for completion of the $3.3bn project in 2014. The Kitimat modernisation project will increase the smelter's current production capacity by more than 48% to around 420,000 tonnes per year. The Royal Bank of Scotland has sold its tenanted pub business to Scottish & Newcastle Pub Company (S&NPC), a subsidiary of Dutch brewer Heineken. The business, which comprises 918 pubs across the UK, has been operated since 1999 by S&NPC under a management agreement. As a result of the sale, RBS received cash proceeds of around £422m.House builder Berkeley Group saw profit before tax rise by 64.1% to £101.1m in the six months ended October 31st from £61.6m the year before. Revenue rose 20.4% to £404.9m from £336.2m. In Central London, demand for prime residential property in good locations remained strong over the period as a whole and this has seen Berkeley increase its level of forward sales by 15.2% from £813.5m to £937.2m, the company said.--jh