London close: Stocks slump after giving up rally
27th Jul 2011 16:49
Stocks finished deep in the red, giving up an earlier rally, after a poor showing on Wall Street. Energy supplier Scottish & Southern Energy suffered after going ex-dividend. Meanwhile, sector peer Centrica also fell, albeit by a lesser extent, after utilities firm British Gas (owned by Centrica)
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks still stuck lower
27th Jul 2011 12:03
The top share index nestles slightly in negative territory, perhaps waiting for US trading to start before striking into the blue. Energy supplier Scottish & Southern Energy is suffering after going ex-dividend. Meanwhile, sector peer Centrica also fell, albeit by a lesser extent, after utilities
Read moreLondon open: SSE leads the fallers in early trading
27th Jul 2011 08:31
The top share index saw a sharp decline in early trading, as the debt crisis in the US continues to weigh on market sentiment. Energy supplier Scottish & Southern Energy was the heavy faller, tumbling 4.85% after going ex dividend. Meanwhile, sector peer Centrica also fell lower, albeit by a les
Read moreLondon close: Footsie recovers to close higher
26th Jul 2011 16:55
The top share index finished in the blue on Tuesday despite a volatile day of trading, as investors digested a host of trading updates and results from some heavyweight constituents. Meanwhile, the US debt ceiling saga continued to roll on in the background as President Barack Obama and House Spea
Read moreFTSE 100 Movers: Mixed receptions for oil giants
26th Jul 2011 13:45
After beating market expectations the oil and gas behemoth BG Group saw its share price head north. The company's underlying second-quarter net income came in a shade ahead of expectations at $1.15bn, up from a restated $918m the year before. Underlying profit before tax saw a sharp incline from
Read moreLondon midday: FTSE 100 seeks direction after news flurry
26th Jul 2011 12:07
The top shares index sits just in the red with a flurry of updates failing to provide a definite sense of direction. The mixed reception is apparent in the oil sector where BP and BG Group are moving in both directions BP is the laggard of the FTSE 100. The rising price of oil and gas boosted its p
Read moreLondon open: Oil stocks pull FTSE 100 both ways
26th Jul 2011 08:32
London has got off to a quiet start overall but there is plenty of corporate news for traders to digest and stocks are moving in both directions. BP is the laggard of the FTSE 100. The rising price of oil and gas boosted its profits in the second quarter, though the benefits were partially offset b
Read moreLondon pre-open: Footsie little moved by big results
26th Jul 2011 07:50
Despite a gush of results from some index heavyweights, the blue-chip index is set to open barely changed. The rising price of oil and gas boosted BP's profits in the second quarter, though the benefits were partially offset by lower production as a result of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. T
Read moreRising oil price boosts BP profits
26th Jul 2011 07:21
The rising price of oil and gas boosted BP's profits in the second quarter, though the benefits were partially offset by lower production as a result of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The oil giant saw underlying profits of £3.2bn for the three month period, against a loss of £10.3bn for the
Read moreLondon close: US debt uncertainty persists, Footsie finishes under
25th Jul 2011 16:42
The Footsie trimmed earlier gains as markets in the US recovered after a weak start. Despite falling as low as 5,893 on Monday, London's blue chip index finished firmly above the 5,900 mark, as giants BP, ARM, BG and GlaxoSmithKline rose ahead of their interim results due tomorrow. While stocks on
Read moreTuesday preview: BP, BG, Glaxo ...
25th Jul 2011 15:49
Two of the UK's big oil companies are set to release quarterly figures on Tuesday: BG Group and BP. Shares in BG shot up at the end of June after the company doubled its estimates for the Brazilian Santos Basin reserves and resources, but the shares have drifted lower for most of July. "In Q1 [th
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Barclays leads banks higher
20th Jul 2011 14:05
The banks were leading the Footsie higher on Wednesday afternoon, with Barclays, RBS and Lloyds recouping some of the week's earlier losses. Barclays was the highest riser, gaining 4.54%, but still remains around 3% down over the last seven days. ARM Holdings was in demand with the chip company bo
Read moreBP improves drilling standards after oil spill
15th Jul 2011 12:37
BP has announced a series of measures to improve the safety and environmental performance of its operations in the Gulf of Mexico as it seeks to salvage its reputation following last year's disastrous oil spill. The company says its new measures go beyond existing regulatory obligations. "BP's com
Read moreBP, partners invest £3bn to develop Shetland Islands assets
13th Jul 2011 10:19
Oil giant BP and its co-venturers have approved a £3bn investment programme to upgrade and replace the existing subsea facilities at the Schiehallion and Loyal oil fields by the Shetland Islands. The Quad 204 project involves replacing the existing Schiehallion floating, production, storage and off
Read moreWednesday newspaper round-up: North Sea oil, BP, Sports Direct
6th Jul 2011 06:06
The Treasury has buckled under pressure from the energy industry by trimming its £2bn windfall tax on North Sea oil producers to provide loopholes for early stage, less profitable offshore drilling operations. Just four months after George Osborne imposed a special levy on oil and gas exploration to
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