London midday: Tesco and miners gain ahead of UK budget
5th Dec 2012 11:40
The FTSE 100 had come off its earlier highs but was still trading in positive territory by Wednesday lunchtime, as markets await the Autumn Statement from Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne. He is set to say: "In this Autumn Statement, we show that this coalition government is confronting t
Read moreLondon open: Stocks rise ahead of Osborne's Autumn Statement
5th Dec 2012 08:29
Equity markets rose on Wednesday morning after strong gains for Asian markets overnight with the focus in the UK turning to George Osborne ahead of his budget statement. "In a week dominated by Europe and the on-going to-ing and fro-ing in the US with respect to the fiscal cliff, markets will be tu
Read moreLondon close: Miners surge on US hopes
29th Nov 2012 16:39
- US GDP and housing data boosts stocks - 'Fiscal cliff' concerns ease after politicians' comments - Mining stocks rise on demand hopes Hopes about the US economy were driving gains on Thursday as investors reacted positively to comments from politicians about the 'fiscal cliff' and decent economic
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks hold on to gains despite gloomy OECD forecast
27th Nov 2012 11:28
- Greek aid deal lifts stocks - OECD cuts growth forecasts - UK Q3 GDP growth confirmed at one per cent Stock markets across Europe were trading firmly in positive territory on Tuesday morning following last night's Greek aid deal; however the bounce was only moderate with analysts saying that the
Read moreLondon open: Footsie gains after Greek deal
27th Nov 2012 08:25
Banks and mining stocks were providing a lift to equity markets on Tuesday morning as risk appetite increased on the back of last night's Greek bailout deal. After countless delays, Eurozone finance ministers finally inked out an agreement on Greece, giving the green light to the disbursement of th
Read moreLondon pre-open: Stocks to jump on Greek deal
27th Nov 2012 07:39
City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open up 29 points from yesterday's close of 5,787, after a deal was struck overnight to rescue the struggling economy of Greece. Under the deal, Greece will now be given until 2020 to reduce its debt-to-GDP ratio to 124%, while maturities on the debt have als
Read moreTuesday broker round-up UPDATE
27th Nov 2012 07:19
Aberdeen Asset Management: Citigroup raises target price from 320p to 345p and downgrades to neutral. JP Morgan raises target price from 330p to 414p, overweight rating unchanged. Credit Suisse moves target price from 323p to 380p, outperform rating kept. Exane BNP Paribas raises target price from 3
Read moreSevern Trent on track to hit targets
27th Nov 2012 07:04
Utilities giant Severn Trent broadly met forecasts in the first half and said it also expects to deliver full-year results in line with expectations. The company announced that group turnover rose 3.6% to £917.7m in the six months to September 30th, from £886m the same period the year before. Charl
Read moreTuesday preview: Mitchells and Butler and Severn Trent
26th Nov 2012 13:54
Pubs group Mitchells and Butler reports its full year figures, with analysts at Peel Hunt not expecting 'any major surprises'. Nor does it expect any fireworks in terms of strategy, despite a new Chief Executive Officer at the helm. Analyst Nicolas Batram has pencilled in sales of £1.89bn, with pr
Read moreLondon close: Footsie registers best weekly performance this year
23rd Nov 2012 16:45
- FTSE 100 gains 3.8 per cent higher on the week - German and French confidence data beats expectations - EU summit ends with deadlock After a subdued start, UK stocks rallied in afternoon trade on Friday with decent economic figures from Germany and France lifting the mood. The positive finish h
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Water groups take a bath; SABMiller extends gains
23rd Nov 2012 14:00
Utilities stocks were among the worst performers of the day on Friday as companies reacted to Tuesday's Ofwat statement in which it clarified some licence modification proposals following requests for more information from shareholders. The general consensus is that water suppliers do not agree wi
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks edge higher after German data
23rd Nov 2012 11:25
London's FTSE 100 index was making gains by Friday lunchtime after some better-than-expected data from Germany, though stocks were trading within a tight range on light volumes with just 18 points separating the benchmark's intraday high and low. "Financial markets are attempting to build gains at
Read moreWeek ahead: Severn Trent, United Utilities, Kingfisher
23rd Nov 2012 09:32
Next week will see traders return to their desks in full-force following the long Thanksgiving Day holiday in the United States. Foremost on their minds will be two things, the most recent survey data for US retailers out over this past weekend and Monday evening's meeting of Eurozone finance minist
Read moreLondon open: Footsie unchanged as another quiet day expected
23rd Nov 2012 08:24
UK stocks was broadly unchanged on Friday morning in anticipation of another quiet day on markets with Wall Street only open for half a session following Thanksgiving yesterday. "European headline shares opened tentatively today as investors remained apprehensive towards risk-on assets in the face
Read moreLondon pre-open: FTSE to open almost flat as investors await direction
23rd Nov 2012 07:35
City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open up three points from yesterday's close of 5,791, with investors left largely without direction as both markets in the US and Japan were closed for business overnight. Friday is set to be another quiet day on London's stock market with Wall Street only op
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