London open: Early gains fizzle out
28th Sep 2009 08:47
London's blue-chip have started the week hesitantly desite a rally by Wolseley on hopes its fortunes may have bottomed. Builders' supplies specialist Wolseley racked up losses of more than £1bn last year after a raft of one-off charges. Ongoing pre-tax losses came in at £766m in the year to July, a
Read moreLondon pre-open: Flat start expected
28th Sep 2009 07:39
London's blue-chip equities are set to start the week hesitantly lower with traders predicting the FTSE 100 will open down by about 6 points at 5,076. Builders’ supplies specialist Wolseley racked up losses of more than £750m last year after a raft of one-off charges. Pre-tax losses came in at £766
Read moreAstraZeneca gets Seroquel patent boost
28th Sep 2009 07:25
AstraZeneca has won another round in its long-running fight against generic competition to bipolar treatment Seroquel after a US appeal court upheld its infringement claim against Sandoz and Teva Pharmaceutical over Seroquel tablets. A US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has affirmed the Su
Read moreSector movers: Mining rally stops for breath
21st Sep 2009 11:32
Mining stocks have run into profit taking amid weakness in the metals markets. The sector posted good gains last week in line with growing optimism over the prospects for global economic recovery. Even Antofagasta, upgraded today to 'buy' from 'neutral' in a Goldman Sachs mining sector review, is
Read moreSector movers: Chemical sector reacts to Johnson Matthey downgrade
14th Sep 2009 14:00
Johnson Matthey is helping drag the chemicals sector lower. The platinum refiner and catalytic converter maker was downgraded to 'equal-weight' from 'overweight' at Morgan Stanley. Elsewhere in chemicals, Plant Health Care falls back slightly after depressed agricultural markets resulted in widenin
Read moreLondon close: Footsie plunges after Wall Street reversal
1st Sep 2009 16:43
A sharp reversal in US stocks' fortunes ensured Footsie finished deep in the red after abruptly giving up an attempt to climb into positive territory. Miners were weak on lower metals prices, with Kazakh pair ENRC and Kazakhmys among the worst hit. Lower metals prices also hurt the likes of Antof
Read moreLondon afternoon: Footsie still stuck after plunge
1st Sep 2009 14:41
There has been little change in the FTSE 100 since it abruptly took a downward turn this morning Kazakh resources group ENRC is leading the mining sector lower, closely followed by fellow Kazakh operation Kazakhmys. Lower metals prices are also hitting the likes of Antofagasta, Anglo American, Lon
Read moreTechMARK movers: Skyepharma down on US delay
1st Sep 2009 13:04
Skyepharma is leading the fallers on news that the US launch of the drug developer's asthma treatment Flutiform will be delayed for two years at least after the US Food and Drug Administration insisted on more data on dosing. The result is a blow for Skyepharma, which originally had expected appro
Read moreLondon midday: Banks and miners lead retreat
1st Sep 2009 12:16
Banks and miners are dragging the market lower and have pushed the Footsie below the 4,900 level. Kazakh resources group ENRC is leading the mining sector lower, closely followed by fellow Kazakhi operation Kazakhmys. Lower metals prices are also hitting the likes of Antofagasta, Anglo American, L
Read moreSector movers: Drugs progress boosts Pharma stock
1st Sep 2009 11:12
Positive updates from two big hitters have given the pharmaceuticals sector a shot in the arm. AstraZeneca is one of the FTSE 100's best performers after announcing it is to press ahead with plans to submit its ticagrelor drug, Brilinta, for regulatory approval in the fourth quarter of 2009 after
Read moreAstra buoyed by Brilinta test results
1st Sep 2009 07:52
Drug developer AstraZeneca is to press ahead with plans to submit its ticagrelor drug, Brilinta, for regulatory approval in the fourth quarter of 2009 after positive results from a major trial. The company hailed results from a trial which showed ticagrelor reduced cardiovascular death and heart at
Read moreSector movers: RBS drags back banks
7th Aug 2009 10:13
RBS is leading the banking sector lower after rounding of the latest stream of banking results by posting a small profit, but seeing bad debts soar to £7.5bn. Chief executive Stephen Hester called the results "poor" following a jump in losses attributable to shareholders to £1.04bn from £827m in 20
Read moreSector movers: Banks dominate
6th Aug 2009 13:29
This week's well-received results from Lloyds, Barclays and HSBC continue to keep buyers active. All three are sharply higher Thursday, sending Banks to the top of the tree. Royal Bank of Scotland is also better ahead of tomorrow's interim results. Unilever has given Food Producers & Processors a
Read moreLondon close: Stocks pushed lower
5th Aug 2009 17:00
London's top stocks finished in the red as a poor start in the US and ex-dividends eventually ate into the early gains. US shares made a dull start on worse than expected job losses in July according to the private firm ADP. It said 371,000 people were laid-off compared to estimates of 350,000. L
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Lloyds Banking
5th Aug 2009 14:57
Lloyds Banking shares are up over 12% as investors bet that the worst of the bad debts that caused an underlying loss of £4bn in the half year to June have passed. Impairment charges jumped by nearly £11bn to £13.4bn, reflecting huge write-downs of HBOS's commercial property loans. Lloyd's expects
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