FTSE in-depth: Warfare helps game advance
All computer gamers will know this but there are only 13 days to go until the release of what industry experts believe will be the best-selling game of all time.
Geoff Foster: BP helped the FTSE to recover.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, due in shops on November 10, will apparently arm gamers with an arsenal of advanced and powerful modern-day firepower and transport them to the most treacherous hotspots around the globe.
Game Group advanced 6.8p to 156.2p on hopes that its success will make it a memorable Christmas trading period for the UK's leading computer games retailer.
Call of Duty will be released in four different retail versions across PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 platforms. It is the sixth instalment of the Call for Duty series and follows the critically acclaimed Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.
Game Group's shares have underperformed over the past year on fears of slower growth, lack of reassurance about the next generation of consoles and the threat posed by digital distribution.
However, buyers have nibbled away of late after the group said it was looking forward to a strong line-up of software and accessory releases in the run-up to the festive period.
Broker Killik believes Call of Duty provides the ingredients for Game to trade well through the Christmas period. It has a market-leading position, a strong balance sheet and improving gross margins.
On the other side of the street, Debenhams touched 86.05p and closed 2.75p better at 84.35p after buyers responded to news that TPG, the former Texas Pacific Group, had sold its 9.34pc stake in the department store chain. Bank of America Merrill Lynch apparently crossed 120m shares at 81.5p a share. The sale coincided with Barclays Capital advising clients to buy Debs up to £1.
Better-than-expected third-quarter figures from BP (27.4p higher at 594.5p) helped the Footsie recover 9.23 points to 5,200.97. Wall Street held its nerve and ventured 40 points forward despite the Conference Board saying that US consumers turned decidedly more pessimistic in October with households increasingly worried about job prospects. The American unemployment rate was 9.8% in September.
Buying on hopes that today's third-quarter figures will come up to scratch lifted drugs giant GlaxoSmithKline 27p to 1,257p. Rival AstraZeneca, which reports Q3 data tomorrow, put on 55p to 2,830.5p.
Still surprised by the proposed shock break-up of Dutch bank ING and fearing harsh sanctions from European regulators as the price of state support, fund managers sold the part-nationalised banks.
Royal Bank of Scotland, which is over 70% owned by the UK taxpayer, fell 3.58p more to 40.84p, while 43% taxpayer-owned Lloyds Banking Group declined a further 5.42p to 83.92p.
A Panmure Gordon sell recommendation following slightly disappointing first-quarter figures left Aquarius Platinum 13.5p lower at 284.89p. Cash rich Griffin Mining, on the other hand, rose 3p to 39.75p after formally admitting an application to access deeper levels of the Caijiaying mine and expects final approval over the next 28 days.
Ormonde Mining added 1.75p at 8.5p after signing a joint venture agreement with Antofagasta covering Ormonde's interests in Southern Spain.
Bob Holt's social housing and care services provider Mears jumped 6.5p to 279.25p on a bullish trading statement. Full-year results will be in line with expectations and the group has won new orders worth another £450m-plus since interims in March.
The Social Housing bid pipeline has increased 20% to £3.5bn and £1.5bn is now at the active tender/advanced bid stage compared with £860m at the interims. Collins Stewart's target price is 335p.
Support services group Tribal slumped 14.75p to 73p after warning about 'significant challenging trading conditions'. It is now implementing a significant cost reduction programme across all activities.
A UBS upgrade to buy from neutral attracted buyers to Close Brothers, 12.5p better at 711p. The broker believes the stock's recent significant underperformance is unjustified given the solid trading update expected on November 18, and the new management team's focus on shareholder value.
Turkey focused group Ariana Resources edged up 0.38p to 4p after announcing the formation of a 50/50 joint venture with a domestic partner to develop the Sindirgi and Tavsan projects in the country.
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