London open: Very quiet start
30th Dec 2009 09:03
There is very little movement so far this morning among London's blue chips despite a dip overnight in Asia as investors fretted about metal prices. Oil shares in contrast are strong this morning as the price of crude rose to $79 on the prospect of a very cold US winter and rising longer term deman
Read moreLondon close: Footsie at 15-month high
24th Dec 2009 12:28
Miners pushed London sharply higher in a shortened trading session Thursday, getting the leading index up to 5,400 briefly and to its highest close since September 2008. Silver producer Fresnillo is top of the table on stronger metal prices, with BHP Billiton, Vedanta Resources and Rio Tinto also h
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Miners buoyed by China talk
24th Dec 2009 11:13
Miners continue to drive Footsie higher, with silver miner Fresnillo leading the sector higher today. Reports yesterday quoted Chinese sources as saying that it could start to increase its imports of commodities for its strategic reserves at an "appropriate" time. This was taken as a signal China
Read moreLondon close: Footsie hits one-month high
23rd Dec 2009 16:23
The UK's leading index lost a chunk of its gains late on as weak housing data hurt Wall Street, although London still registered its best close in over a month. Despite predictably quiet trade, the FTSE 100 ended ahead for the third session in a row and as high as it's been since 16 November. It w
Read moreLondon afternoon: Gains trimmed
23rd Dec 2009 14:16
London saw its gains pared over the lunch time session in predictably quiet trading. Around one-third of Footsie constituents are now in the red, compared to around one-fifth at midday. Included among the laggards is Cairn Energy, which gives back some of the chunky gains racked up over the first t
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Miners on the march
23rd Dec 2009 12:27
Miners are among the top risers, including Rio Tinto, which has accepted a $2.025bn offer for its Alcan Packaging pharmaceutical, tobacco and food divisions from the packaging group Amcor as it continues its programme of asset sales to ease its debt pile. Kazakh pair ENRC and Kazakhmys are the top
Read moreLondon midday: M&A activity keeps shares bubbling
23rd Dec 2009 12:14
The FTSE 100 index hit a 52-week high in the morning session as the pre-Christmas advance continued. Bank of England policymakers voted unanimously to keep interest rates at 0.5% and their programme of quantitative easing (QE) at £200bn when they met earlier this month, it emerged today. Mining gi
Read moreLondon open: Good run continues
23rd Dec 2009 08:49
Footsie has continued its strong run ahead of the Christmas break, though trading is light with news slowing to a trickle. The release of the minutes from the most recent meeting of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee will have the usual suspects poring over the statement searching for
Read moreSector movers: Balfour Beatty builds gains
23rd Dec 2009 08:39
Balfour Beatty helps lift the construction and materials sector higher after the support services contracting firm said it has won a facilities management contract from defence technology outfit QinetiQ. The seven year contract has a base-line value of £15m per annum, and will be supplemented with
Read moreLondon pre-open: More gains expected
23rd Dec 2009 07:35
Footsie is expect to notch up more gains as it continues its strong run ahead of the Christmas break. The release of the minutes from the most recent meeting of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) will have the usual suspects poring over the statement searching for clues to future
Read moreRio accepts Alcan Packaging offer
23rd Dec 2009 07:06
Mining giant Rio Tinto has accepted a $2.025bn offer for its Alcan Packaging pharmaceutical, tobacco and food divisions from the packaging group Amcor as it continues its programme of asset sales to ease its debt pile. The proposed transaction, which Rio received in August, has been cleared by the
Read moreRio awards $200m deal to indigenous JV
18th Dec 2009 07:34
Rio Tinto has awarded a new mining contract in its Pilbara iron ore operations to a joint venture between native title holders the Eastern Guruma and mining services company NRW. The group said the $200m deal to build, mine and transport iron ore from Rio Tinto's Western Turner Syncline deposit is
Read moreBroker tips: Rio Tinto, Xstrata, Drax, Game
15th Dec 2009 12:41
Strong demand from China and restocking in 2010 could lead to the most resource intense recovery since the 1970s, according to one broker. UBS says companies have cannibalised 15% of a year's supply of base metals out of the supply chain in 2009, and will have to return to buying that material agai
Read moreBroker snap: Miners to benefit from 'resources squeeze'
15th Dec 2009 12:39
Strong demand from China and restocking in 2010 could lead to the most resource intense recovery since the 1970s, according to one broker. UBS says companies have cannibalised 15% of a year's supply of base metals out of the supply chain in 2009, and will have to return to buying that material agai
Read moreLondon midday: Steady gains for Footsie
11th Dec 2009 12:19
London had has a good morning with mining stocks helping Footsie post gains as metals prices rally following some strong economic data from China. Industrial production growth in China rose again in November to hit 19.1% year-on-year. It is fastest pace of growth in industrial production since Jun
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