Wednesday 5 September 2012
QUOTE OF THE DAY
Catch a man a fish, and you can sell it to him. Teach a man to fish, and you ruin a wonderful business opportunity
- Karl Marx
THIS MORNING IN LONDON
FTSE 100
5,664.40
-7.61 -0.13%
FTSE 250
11,431.46
2.62 0.02%
FTSE 350
3,016.21
-3.42 -0.11%
FTSE All Share
2,952.22
-3.40 -0.12%
AIM 100
3,082.68
24.15 0.79%
AIM All Share
682.27
3.29 0.48%
11:46 am
Markets nervous ahead of ECB decision
- All eyes on ECB meeting
- Concerns about China, Japan and Australia weigh on sentiment
- Britvic in merger talks with AG Barr
The FTSE 100 was well off its intraday low by Wednesday lunchtime but still firmly in the red as investors continued to fret about the upcoming policy decision in Europe tomorrow.
More than one-tenth of the top-share index's constituents are trading in ex-dividend format today, which is acting as a millstone around the benchmark's neck.
European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi is widely expected to unveil plans on Thursday for buying sovereign debt in order to bring down bond yields in peripheral nations. "Whatever the decision however, there is still a long way to go before we go back to any sense of normality," said trader Simon Furlong from Spreadex this morning.
US stock futures were pointing to a weak start on Wall Street in a few hours on the back of global growth concerns and a profit warning from economic bellwether FedEx Corp.
Weighing on sentiment were gross domestic product (GDP) growth figures from Australia this morning. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, second-quarter GDP rose by 0.6%, below the 0.8% growth expected.
Meanwhile, the HSBC China service sector purchasing managers' index for the month of August revealed a small slowdown, retreating to 52 points from 53.1 in the month before.
Bank of Japan (BoJ) board member Ryuzo Miyao has said that the odds of an extended world economic slowdown have increased and that the monetary authority must remain ready to take decisive action if necessary.
FTSE 100: Xstrata and Glencore gain before shareholder vote
Potential merger partners Xstrata and Glencore were on the rise ahead of a crucial day on Friday, when shareholders vote on the proposed tie-up. Qatar Holdings, which owns around 12% of the miner, is among the several shareholders who have already voiced their opposition to the merger.
Oil titan BP was falling heavily this morning on press reports that the US Department of Justice is intent on throwing the book at the company for its part in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, as it seeks to have the maximum possible penalties imposed on the British firm.
Several stocks were lower after going ex-dividend today, meaning that investors will not be able to access the firm's latest payout. These include: Aggreko, ARM Holdings, BHP Billiton, Diageo, Evraz, IMI, Kazakhmys, Resolution, Serco, Shire and Tullow Oil.
Financial services provider and asset management group Hargreaves Lansdown was flat despite saying total assets under administration rose 7% in the year ended 30th June 2012 while profit jumped 21% despite continued market volatility.
Insurance group Prudential gained after completing the acquisition of SRLC American Holdings Corp from Swiss Re after receiving all necessary regulatory approvals.
Telecoms group BT Group was benefitting from a broker upgrade from JPMorgan Cazenove, who lifted its rating from 'neutral' to 'overweight'.
FTSE 250: Britvic, AG Barr gain on merger hopes
Drinks companies Britvic and AG Barr have announced that they are in discussions about an all-share merger which would create "one of the leading soft drinks companies in Europe". Shares in Britvic surged by nearly 14%, while AG Barr was up around 7%. At today's prices, the market cap of the combined group would be around GBP1.4bn.
Sporting goods retailer Sports Direct gained after saying total sales for the 13 weeks ending July 29th were up 25.3% after sales were "boosted by the tremendous performance of Team GB at the London Olympics."
Investors of airline easyJet celebrated the group's plans to give up the 'no reserved seats' format it pioneered after customers said they would rather avoid the scramble traditionally associated with boarding a low cost flight.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Wolseley (WOS) 2,617.00p +2.15%
ITV (ITV) 83.70p +2.07%
Xstrata (XTA) 936.00p +2.02%
Smith & Nephew (SN.) 674.00p +1.97%
Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 1,544.00p +1.71%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 33.45p +1.69%
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 1,623.00p +1.69%
CRH (CRH) 1,115.00p +1.64%
Sage Group (SGE) 304.80p +1.50%
Prudential (PRU) 781.50p +1.49%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
BP (BP.) 419.65p -3.88%
Resolution Ltd. (RSL) 206.20p -3.64%
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,769.00p -3.17%
BG Group (BG.) 1,235.00p -2.83%
Kazakhmys (KAZ) 580.50p -2.76%
Evraz (EVR) 213.10p -2.25%
Tullow Oil (TLW) 1,357.00p -1.52%
Eurasian Natural Resources Corp. (ENRC) 296.20p -1.50%
Imperial Tobacco Group (IMT) 2,413.00p -1.47%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,228.00p -1.30%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Britvic (BVIC) 370.90p +12.87%
Barr (A.G.) (BAG) 439.00p +5.63%
Sports Direct International (SPD) 330.00p +5.10%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 63.05p +3.53%
Dechra Pharmaceuticals (DPH) 522.50p +3.36%
Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 53.70p +2.97%
COLT Group SA (COLT) 120.00p +2.56%
Heritage Oil (HOIL) 198.50p +2.32%
Home Retail Group (HOME) 97.70p +2.30%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 1,523.00p +2.21%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Bumi (BUMI) 271.00p -5.90%
Cape (CIU) 226.00p -4.72%
Lonmin (LMI) 540.50p -4.25%
Phoenix Group Holdings (DI) (PHNX) 489.00p -3.83%
Gem Diamonds Ltd. (DI) (GEMD) 152.50p -3.48%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 424.20p -2.91%
John Laing Infrastructure Fund Ltd (JLIF) 108.10p -2.88%
SEGRO (SGRO) 224.00p -2.86%
Soco International (SIA) 334.70p -2.73%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 146.90p -2.72%
WHAT THE BROKERS SAY
FREE SHARE TIP OF THE DAY
From James Faulkner of WatsHot.com
Software Radio Technology is a world leader in the provision of advanced wireless digital technology solutions for the marine sector, specialising in identification, safety and tracking. SRT's products utilise over 20 years of R&D into radio-based wireless technologies, and its established distribution network gives it access to all the key international markets. The shares have been on the back foot of late due to order setbacks and forecast volatility. However, the global opportunity for SRT's products looks undiminished and value is beginning to emerge at current levels.
Click here to view the rest of the article
THE LATEST ON THE CRAZY BOARD
The top 5 hot company threads on the Bulletin Board:
Cluff Gold
BlackRock World Mining Trust
IQE
Falkland Oil & Gas
Running trading thread
Click here to discuss shares with other ShareCrazy members
BOOK OF THE WEEK
By Rodney Hobson
A book review by Luka Lukic of t1ps.com
In this book Rodney Hobson aims to provide a straight forward introduction into the world of portfolio management and best practices to employ when selecting what you want to invest in. Thankfully it doesn't pretend to offer a guaranteed, one size fits all, scheme to become a millionaire, but instead attempts to compel the reader to assess what they wants to get out of their investment and then provides guidance to that end.
The book aims to explain the different behaviours of the various market sectors, and the importance of not only holding a range of shares, but diversifying them throughout the sectors to ensure a proper hedge. It also walks the reader logically through a range of factors than can, and most likely will, affect the share price and gives case studies to demonstrate the impact on real companies.
Click here to view the rest of the article
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