London midday: Miners hit by new China fears
20th Jan 2010 12:06
Miners are dragging Footsie lower on reports that China has told its banks to stop lending in an attempt to cool its runaway economy. If true, that could have ramifications for metal demand hence the meaty falls today for Lonmin, Xtrata, ENRC and Antofagasta. BHP Billiton set half-year production
Read moreLondon close: Healthy gain for Footsie
14th Jan 2010 16:26
London blue chips rose near the close to finish the day handily ahead, despite a disappointing response to the latest retail updates. Primark and British Sugar owner Associated British Foods was one of the few risers. The group had a better than anticipated end to 2009 and expects a 'significant in
Read moreLondon afternoon: US data hits London
14th Jan 2010 14:28
Disappointing US retail sales for December had repercussions this side of the pond, prompting the morning's gains to be pared. US retail sales fell by 0.3% month-on-month in December, against expectations of a slight rise. Miners remain wanted with Xstrata, Rio Tinto, Kazakhmys and Antofagasta am
Read moreLondon midday: Miners lift Footsie
14th Jan 2010 12:08
Footsie is in the blue as strength in the mining sector offsets weakness among retailers following a stream of updates from the sector. Xstrata, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto, Kazakhmys, Eurasian Natural Resources and Antofagasta are all among the best performers. Rio Tintohailed another very strong qu
Read moreLondon open: Miners leading the way
14th Jan 2010 08:25
Miners are leading London's top stocks higher in early dealings on a busy day on the company news front. Xstrata, Vedanta Resources, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto, Kazakhmys, Eurasian Natural Resources and Antofagasta are all among the best performers. Rio Tinto hailed another very strong quarter for ir
Read moreBroker tips: Ryanair, miners, Halfords, Man
8th Jan 2010 13:10
Commerzbank has reiterated its hold stance of no-frills airline Ryanair with a target price of €3.50 after an update on the group's long-term strategy. The German broker says that following the cancellation of the large Boeing order at the end of last year Ryanair will concentrate on optimising yie
Read moreBroker snap: UK miners still have the edge
8th Jan 2010 09:19
With an insatiable appetite for commodities that has scarcely been dulled by the global economic crisis, it is unsurprising that China should seek to have a hand in their production. However, while the east Asian economic powerhouse is stepping up its investment in mining projects, UK miners are st
Read moreBroker tips: Miners, Tate & Lyle
7th Jan 2010 14:32
Cazenove remains ‘overweight’ on the mining sector and expects some aggressive increases to consensus EPS forecasts for 2010. Last year was a ‘tremendous’ one for mining stocks and the broker believes some favourable, ‘albeit slightly tired themes’ remain, like BRIC economic growth, infrastructure
Read moreLondon midday: Bank sits on hands
7th Jan 2010 11:51
London drifted lower ahead of the announcement of the Bank of England's quantitative easing and interest rate decision, which, as expected, left both the level of interest rates and the scale of the quanititative easing programme unchanged. Mining stocks are proving to be a millstone round Footsie'
Read moreBroker snap: Caz still backs miners
7th Jan 2010 10:20
Cazenove remains 'overweight' on the mining sector and expects some aggressive increases to consensus EPS forecasts for 2010. Last year was a 'tremendous' one for mining stocks and the broker believes some favourable, 'albeit slightly tired themes' remain, like BRIC economic growth, infrastructure
Read moreLondon open: Miners offset strong supermarkets
7th Jan 2010 08:14
Miners are leading London's top stocks lower in early dealings on Thursday, offsetting strong demand in supermarket groups. Eurasian Natural Resources, Kazakhmys, Randgold Resources, Antofagasta, Xstrata and BHP Billiton are among the worst performers. On the positive side, Sainsbury, Tesco and Mo
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Resource stocks on top
4th Jan 2010 12:11
Resource stocks are lifting Footsie higher with Cairn Energy on top of the pile after saying it has secured a second drilling rig to assist its exploration programme in the Disko West area offshore Greenland in the second half of 2010. Royal Bank of Scotland is not far behind, despite confirming th
Read moreLondon close: Footsie ends year 22% higher
31st Dec 2009 12:48
More gains for FTSE 100 on the last day of 2009 capped a year of strong recovery from the ravages of the economic crisis. The leading share index posted a 22% rise - its best yearly performance since 1997 -as shares recovered from the sharp declines that began as the financial crisis intensified t
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 moreLondon close: Blue chips at 15-month high
29th Dec 2009 16:48
London's blue chip index closed at a new 15-month high having regained all of the ground lost after the collapse of Lehman Brothers. Footsie was last this high on 12 September 2008 when it stood at 5,416. The following day Lehman Brothers went bust. London is now the seventh stock market to regain
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