| CATEGORY: MARKET OVERVIEW SECTOR: BANKING |
Tue 31 Jul 2012
|
LONDON (SHARECAST) - 1630:Close Today figures showed that rather than herald a boom in shopping, it seems the Olympics has encouraged consumers to stay away from stores in central London. Figures from research group Experian show that on Friday, ahead of the Olympics opening ceremony, 10.4 per cent fewer people visited shops in the area compared to the same time in 2011. For its part GfK Research reported that British consumers´ spirits are stuck in a rut, along with the economy, according to the results of its latest survey. GfK said its gauge for UK consumer confidence remained unchanged at -29 points in July, a level around which the index has now hovered for seven months. In the US personal consumption figures for the month of June have come in weaker than forecast.
In the equity space, and back in London, BP and Weir led on the downside for the better part of the day. The weakness to be seen in shares of Weir may be more notable than usual given the positive comments out today from the likes of Investec and Numis on the firm. Sage fell after a downgrade from UBS. CRH ended lower on negative read-across from German peer Heidelberg Cement.
Defensive issues such as Sainsbury and Unilever found favour towards the end of the session.
The FTSE 100 closed down 58 points at 5,635.
1334: Shares of Royal Bank of Scotland are moving lower after the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) said the lender has held talks with officials about settling interest-rate rigging allegations. The report cited people familiar with the matter. Defensive issues such as SSE and Unilever are also doing better as the benchmark index lists to the downside. FTSE 100 down 27 to 5,667.
1255: Engineer Weir has underwhelmed with its trading update, although broker Investec reckons investors should keep the faith with the Scottish company. 'No major surprises, even if Oil and Gas is expected to be a little weaker, so results should be taken positively,' was Investec's view. Sector peer GKN got a warmer reception for its figures, with broker Jefferies suggesting the shares could be set for a significant jump. 'Our simple logic is that if earnings come to be viewed as robust, attention could switch to how earnings might increase against a stable or more positive backdrop. We believe that could lead to significant share price performance,' the broker said. FTSE 100 is down 18 at 5,676.
1145: London equities are slightly off at the moment, underperforming the wider European market as BP´s results weigh on the benchmark. That despite the strong showing which miners are now putting in. Of possible interest in that regard may be the remarks attributed to Chinese President Hu Jintao to the effect that China will maintain a prudent monetary polciy and a pro-active fiscal stance. There is also some 'market chatter' about weak Chinese economic data expected out tonight. Sage is also moving lower after a downgrade out of UBS to neutral. FTSE 100 down 13 to 5,681.
0920: Engineering group Weir is the worst performing blue-chip after issuing something that was not quite a profit warning this morning. 'Assuming no significant change in macro economic conditions, full year profit before tax, amortisation and exceptional items is expected to be between 440m-£460 pounds with the low end of the range reflecting no improvement on Q2 in upstream Oil & Gas," the group's statement said. The current median forecast for Weir's profit before tax among a group of 18 brokers covering the stock is 453.5m pounds. Banking group Barclays is also hard hit, on reports that Italian police have removed documents from the bank's Milan office. FTSE 100 is down 7 at 5,686.
0811: London has started in neutral, ahead of the US Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting, which kicks off today. Some investors might also be sitting on their hands ahead of the Bank of England's interest rate decision later this week. BP's second quarter figures have received a lukewarm reception. The company reported a loss after tax as a result of a number of significant impairments, relating primarily to reductions in value of US shale gas assets, certain refineries in the company's portfolio and the decision to suspend the Liberty project in Alaska. Bob Dudley, BP group Chief Executive, said: 'We recognise this was a weak earnings quarter, driven by a combination of factors affecting both the sector and BP specifically.' FTSE 100 is down 9 at 5,684.
|
|
|
|
 |
|
