London close: Footsie rallies but finishes lower
12th Oct 2010 16:46
London battled hard to undo early losses, but fell just short, closing a few points in the red, amid a backdrop of lower commodity prices and sobering trading updates. Miners were under the cosh. Xstrata was among the heavy fallers in the mining sector. It said today it is starting work again at
Read moreLondon afternoon: Resource stocks a drag
12th Oct 2010 14:09
Equity prices continued to recover over the lunch time session though the blue-chip index remains in the red, largely thanks to the weakness of resource stocks. Xstrata, Lonmin, and Antofagasta are the worst hit of the miners, though the whole sector is lower. Metals prices have fallen back as the
Read moreMorgan Sindall wins regeneration contract
12th Oct 2010 13:56
Construction and regeneration group Morgan Sindall has won a contract with Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council, to deliver a regeneration project in Stockbridge Village, Merseyside. The contract, worth £18.5m, requires Morgan Sindall to construct a primary school, a neighbourhood centre with leis
Read moreLondon close: Sluggish Footsie limps higher
10th Sep 2010 16:38
Modest gains on Wall Street failed to spur London into action and the leading share index closed just a few points higher. US shares were boosted by economic figures showing wholesale inventories jumped by 1.3% in July, ahead of estimates, and sales at distributors rose by 0.6%. Among companies he
Read moreLondon afternoon: Main index little moved
10th Sep 2010 14:39
We're little changed from last night's close as Wall Street opens, with a largely bright financials sector offset by mostly weaker commodity plays. Most banks have done well - Barclays excluded - on hopes that new banking rules announced this weekend will be favourable. Regulators are meeting this
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie flat as mining retreat offsets banks' advance
10th Sep 2010 12:01
On a quiet day on the company news front Footsie is flat, with banks advancing on hopes that new banking rules announced this weekend will be favourable, but miners falling back. Regulators are meeting this weekend to thrash out rules on banks' capital. Royal Bank of Scotland leads the sector on ho
Read moreLondon open: Flat start for Footsie
10th Sep 2010 08:51
London has opened flat with little sign of that changing after a lacklustre first hour. US shares tailed off towards the end of day on Wall Street and that has had some impact. Banks are still going well ahead of the new capital rules to be unveiled by BIS on Monday. Royal Bank of Scotland leads th
Read moreMorgan Sindall buys Connaught arm for £28m
10th Sep 2010 07:36
Morgan Sindall, the construction group, has snapped up most of the contracts and assets of the social housing division of beleaguered building group Connaught. The deal will secure the future of about 2,500 workers in that business though prospects for those employed in other parts of the company r
Read moreFriday newspaper round-up: Connaught, Vodafone, Deutsche Bank...
10th Sep 2010 06:40
Morgan Sindall will today announce the acquisition of the bulk of Connaught's social housing repairs operations in a deal that will save thousands of jobs across the country. While the deal, believed to be worth between £20m and £40m, will secure the future of about 2,500 jobs, thousands more rema
Read moreTuesday tips round-up: Wm Morrison, Morgan Sindall, RM...
10th Aug 2010 06:46
Wm Morrison, the supermarket chain, trades on a 2011 price to earnings ratio of 11.9, which makes it one of the cheapest European food retail stocks. Morrisons will face a constrained consumer over the next year, but its plans to become a "nationwide" grocer by further expanding in the south, prog
Read moreLondon close: Financials lead the way
9th Aug 2010 17:05
Leading equities trod water for the afternoon session consolidating strong gains made in the morning. Hopes that the US Federal Reserve will introduce new economic stimulus measures this week played well with the financial sector, with the likes of fund managers Schroders and St. James's Place and
Read moreLondon afternoon: Gains consolidated
9th Aug 2010 14:18
Footsie hit its peak at around 10:00am and has been moving sideways ever since on a relatively quiet day for corporate news. In a buoyant insurance sector Prudential is firmer prior to Thursday's results while Aviva is lifted by Panmure Gordon raising its price target from 496p to 535p. Reboundi
Read moreLondon midday: Blue chips power ahead
9th Aug 2010 12:11
Footsie is powering forward on the back of strong performances from financials and miners. Lonmin and Kazakhmys are the best performing miners, while among financials the stand-out stocks are spread around the insurance (Legal & General, Prudential), banking (Barclays), fund management (Schroders )
Read moreProfits fall at Morgan Sindall
9th Aug 2010 07:34
First half sales and profits fell at contractor and support service group Morgan Sindall as activity declined with the economy, though the order book is up. Revenue in the half year to June 2010 dropped 14% to £0.98bn from £1.14bn last year. Profits fell 10% to £18.4m from £20.5m. "The fall is pri
Read moreMorgan Sindall preferred bidder for Bournemouth regeneration
6th Aug 2010 08:44
Morgan Sindall, the construction and regeneration group, said its investment unit has been named preferred partner for the Bournemouth Town Centre Master Vision regeneration scheme. The scheme, which will run for 20 years and has a development value of between £350m and £500m, is a 50/50 joint ven
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