London close: Late rally limits losses
9th Mar 2010 16:36
A strong early performance from US shares helped Footsie recover from earlier weakness to close only slightly lower on a U-shaped day for the leading share index. Sentiment had earlier been dented by weak economic news. Data from the Office for National Statistics showed the UK's deficit on trade i
Read moreLondon afternoon: Footsie meanders in the red
9th Mar 2010 14:18
Disappointing UK trade figures knocked Footsie early with little help likely from the US as futures point to a weak start on Wall Street. Data from the Office for National Statistics showed the UK's deficit on trade in goods widened to £7.99bn from £7.01bn the previous month, about £1bn more than
Read moreLondon midday:Trade figures derail rally
9th Mar 2010 12:05
Disappointing trade figures announced at 9:30 nipped an attempted rally in the bud and shares spent the rest of the morning in retreat. Data from the Office for National Statistics showed the UK's deficit on trade in goods widened to £7.99bn from £7.01bn the previous month, about £1bn more than ec
Read moreLondon open: Quiet opening for Footsie
9th Mar 2010 08:37
London has opened quietly with buyers content to watch the stream of results from FTSE 350 stalwarts. Shopping centre owner Liberty International is to split into two separate listed businesses, Capital Shopping Centres and Capital & Counties through a demerger. Satellite communications service pr
Read moreLondon pre-open: Hesitant start in store
9th Mar 2010 07:43
Following a mixed performance by US markets yesterday London shares look set for a hesitant opening with the FTSE 100 tipped to ease by 8 points to dip back below the 5600 level. Shopping centre owner Liberty International is to split into two separate listed businesses, Capital Shopping Centres a
Read moreAshtead gains share in tough markets
9th Mar 2010 07:02
Difficult market conditions hit revenue and profitability at equipment rental group Ashtead Group but the company’s boss took comfort from his belief that the company is ‘clearly gaining market share’. ‘This outperformance, together with the preparatory actions we took a year ago to reduce costs an
Read moreLondon open: Steady gains for blue chips
31st Dec 2009 08:53
Footsie is still on course for its best year in over a decade with another good housing report from Nationwide boosting building-related stocks. Plumbers merchant Wolseley and housebuilder Berkeley lead the way after Nationwide's latest survey showed house prices rose by 0.4% in December, taking th
Read moreFriday tips round-up: Go-Ahead, Halma, Marston's
4th Dec 2009 06:40
Bus and train group Go-Ahead is retaining some legacy contracts at Heathrow that are scheduled to run until 2011, and it is holding on to the Meteor car parking business, but the focus is firmly on public transport. Cue the acquisition of Plymouth CityBus, which has a fleet of more than 170 buses
Read moreLondon close: Miners eclipse banks to send index lower
3rd Dec 2009 16:35
London closed on a low note as a good day for bank shares was offset by dips for the miners and oil groups. Banking shares marched forward despite an assertion by influential US bank Goldman Sachs that commodity prices are set to rise in 2010. Goldman Sachs also seems to be out of step in its view
Read moreLondon midday: Shares lack direction
3rd Dec 2009 12:11
Banking shares are still marching forward but gains are countered by weakness among miners, despite an assertion by influential US bank Goldman Sachs that commodity prices are set to rise in 2010. Goldman Sachs also seems to be out of step in its view of banks today, having downgraded the sector to
Read moreLondon open: Banks lead risers, RBS down
3rd Dec 2009 08:21
Barclays and Lloyds are leading London's top stocks higher in early dealings on Thursday, though Royal Bank of Scotland is an exception. RBS has dropped on news that that the bank's board is threatening to resign en masse if Alistair Darling will veto the group's £1.5bn bonus pot. On the positive
Read moreAshtead cuts debt despite profits slump
3rd Dec 2009 07:52
Equipment rental group Ashtead Group saw interim profits plummet and expects trading to remain tough in the second half of its financial year. Underlying profit before tax in the six months to 31 October dived 74% to £20.1m from £76.6m the year before on revenue that fell by 24% to £441m from £581.
Read moreFTSE 250 movers: Yell jumps 25%
9th Sep 2009 09:16
More positive broker coverage has given directories group Yell something to shout about and the shares are up by nearly 25%, continuing their strong run. Cazenove said it believes the shares could rise further as the firm balances its books and sees trading improve. Sports Direct shares are wanted
Read moreWednesday tips round-up: Lloyds Banking, Randgold, Peter Hambro
9th Sep 2009 06:35
Lloyds Banking shares' recent froth has been driven by the company's bold prediction that bad debts have peaked and hopes that it may be able to renegotiate terms of entry into the government's asset guarantee scheme. It may be that Lloyds Banking is the recovery play of the new century. There are
Read moreLondon close: Footsie clings on to gains
8th Sep 2009 17:01
Leading London shares closed mixed, with strong gains on resource stocks counter-balanced by losses on life assurance stocks. Kazakhmys, Antofagasta, Rio Tinto, Xstrata and Vedanta Resources led the mining sector higher, as metal prices improved. Gold miners Fresnillo and Randgold Resources were
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