London close: Profit taking trims gains
11th Nov 2009 17:12
Better than expected unemployment figures and some relatively upbeat comments from Bank of England governor Mervyn King propelled Footsie to a new intra-day high for 2009 in the morning session, but stocks came off the top in the afternoon session. The UK unemployment rate, as measured by the Inter
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Randgold boosted by higher metal prices
11th Nov 2009 16:45
A continued rise in the gold price and strong economic news from China sparked a recovery in mining companies. The biggest riser is Randgold Resources. This rebound follows disappointing third quarter figures, which were released yesterday. Profits were lower as gold sales were flat and production c
Read moreLondon afternoon: Share prices froth over
11th Nov 2009 14:12
Share prices are coming off the top, though Footsie remains comfortably in positive territory thanks to strong demand for miners and insurers. Miners are wanted as metal prices pick up following news that Chinese industrial output rose to a 19-month high in October. BHP Billiton, Kazakhmys, Rio Ti
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie hits intra-day high for 2009
11th Nov 2009 12:15
The Footsie is hovering around its high for the year of 5300, after better than expected UK unemployment figures. Sentiment was little affected by Bank of England governor Mervyn King saying he thinks inflation will rise above the 2% target set by the government as the impact of quantitative easi
Read moreLondon open: Stocks advance early on
11th Nov 2009 08:34
Buyers have piled into mining heavyweights again as metal prices continue to surge, while trading updates and results give International Power and Sainsbury's a boost. Sainsbury's has posted a healthy rise in profits in the 28 weeks to October 3, but repeated a warning that lower food price inflati
Read moreLondon pre-open: Early rise expected
11th Nov 2009 07:35
Footsie is expected to rise in early dealings, with supermarket Sainsbury's in focus after releasing its interim numbers. Sainsbury's posted a healthy rise in profits in the 28 weeks to October 3, but repeated a warning that lower food price inflation will affect growth in the second half. Pre-tax
Read moreReed CEO departs as recession bites
11th Nov 2009 07:03
Reed Elsevier chief executive Ian Smith has resigned after just eight months in the job as the publisher says its key professional information businesses have not escaped the downturn, while advertising and promotion markets are badly hit. "As expected, the trends in the first half of the year hav
Read moreLondon close: Footsie clings on
27th Oct 2009 16:47
Footsie managed to close with gains despite spending some of the day in the red, with oil giant BP leading the risers. BP climbed after it kicked off the oil majors results season with third quarter figures that showed a smaller than feared drop in profits. Profit attributable to shareholders came
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: BP leads the way
27th Oct 2009 14:42
Shares in BP are higher after the oil giant kicked off the oil majors results season on Tuesday with third quarter figures that showed a smaller than feared drop in profits. Peer BG Group, due to deliver third quarter results tomorrow, is also higher. Drug group GlaxoSmithKline is another FTSE 10
Read moreLondon afternoon: London jolted by US consumer confidence data
27th Oct 2009 14:35
An unexpected fall in US consumer confidence in October has had a knock-on effect back in Blighty, with the FTSE 100 relinquishing most of the gains amassed during the morning. Household goods group Reckitt Benckiser shrugged off the recession during the third quarter, reporting a big jump in profi
Read moreLondon midday: Oil fuelled advance
27th Oct 2009 12:14
Better than expected results from BP have given the market a lift but banking shares have declined to join the party. Index heavyweight BP kicked off the oil majors results season with third quarter figures that showed a smaller than feared drop in profits. Profit attributable to shareholders came
Read moreBroker tips: BSkyB, Autonomy, Pearson
26th Oct 2009 13:29
Pay TV company BSkyB 'remains one of the most attractive stocks in the media sector,' according to Nomura Securities, but it is becoming increasingly harder for the company to surprise the market with its strong performance. The broker said that the company's profits and key performance indicators
Read moreBroker snap: Pearson's peers offer better value
26th Oct 2009 13:14
Panmure Gordon has revised its earnings forecasts for publishing group Pearson on the back of last week's trading statement but continues to see more attractive stocks elsewhere in the sector. Following FT-publisher Pearson's 9-months results Panmure Gordon has upgraded its earnings per share forec
Read moreBroker tips: Cadbury, defensives, Trinity Mirror
7th Sep 2009 13:35
US foods group Kraft will need to boost its offer to stand any chance of winning control of Cadbury, the world's second largest confectionery company in terms of sales, broker Charles Stanley reckons. 'The Kraft offer values Cadbury on less than 2x sales, significantly lower than the 2.3x sales it
Read moreBroker snap: Nomura goes defensive
7th Sep 2009 12:59
Nomura Securities is changing the emphasis of its portfolio strategy, moving away from the traditional cyclical groups such as basic industries, consumer cyclicals and capital goods towards some of the recent laggards, such as telecoms, healthcare and utilities. 'The cyclicals now trade on large pr
Read more