FTSE close: EasyJet, BA up; RBS down
Our market report is updated throughout the day with rolling news on the latest movements on the London Stock Exchange.
17.00
The FTSE 100's bounce back earlier today after the announcement of upbeat US job figures - a jump of 70 points at its highest - gradually fizzled out over the afternoon. The index ended with a final closing price of 5,322.35, just 0.18% up on the day, a move broadly mirrored in the Dow Jones, which opened strongly to stand at 10,352.25, a drop of 0.13%, at 12.22pm EST.
A mixed bunch topped the biggest risers in the FTSE 100, including British Airways, which rose 2.81% to 212p, while AstraZeneca was up 2.56% to 2,843p. Edinburgh-based Cairn Energy wasn't far behind with a 1.82% climb to 3,138p. The Sage Group, supplier of business management software, also had a profitable day: its share price appreciated 2.44% to 230.8p.
Miners Randgold Resources and Xstrata headed up the day's major fallers, with drops of 4.25% and 3.44% to finish up 4,973p and 1,066p respectively. Antofagasta fared badly but managed to avoid the same depths after losing 2.28% at 900.5p. BHP Billiton was also down at 1,890.5p, a drop of 2.12%.
16.15
Kraft, the American food giant, has taken its £9.8bn bid for straight to shareholders. The terms are broadly unchanged from last month's bid, which offered 300p and 0.2589 Kraft shares for each Cadbury share.
Cadbury shares were 3.5p lower at 796.5p.
And the FTSE 100 now stands 18.7 points up at 5,331.7.
14.00
The Footsie jumps more than 70 points (see graph right) in response to surprisingly good US jobs figures.
Government data showed that US employers cut 11,000 jobs in November: far fewer than expected and the smallest decline since the start of the recession in December 2007.
The suggestion that the deterioration in the US labour market is in its final stages gave succour to London traders, who had been nervously awaiting the figures in the wake of the Dubai scare.
The FTSE index was last up 33.2 points at 5,346.2.
11.45
Innovation Group is down 1.07p to 10.5p after the software and outsourcing company launched a discounted share placing to shore up its balance sheet and said the US market remains tough.
The company, whose chief executive left the business last month, also says outsourcing volumes have dropped, pushing margins down 4%, after reporting wider full-year losses.
'The placing and open offer is at a 15% discount to Thursday's closing price and aims to strengthen the balance sheet, enabling it to compete versus larger competitors. This implies it has had difficulty competing for new business,' says KBC Peel Hunt analyst Simon Strong.
'A new CEO could attract new investors and reignite the share price but there is little or no continuity on the board following a period of great change,' Strong adds.
Panmure Gordon cut its rating for Innovation Group to 'hold' from 'buy' following the placing news and reduces its target price to 14p from 15p. Reuters.
The FTSE 100 index is 35.5 points down at 5,277.5.
10.00
Airline shares climbed today after low-cost carrier easyJet revealed a sharp rise in bookings and British Airways benefited from a broker upgrade.
BA topped the blue-chip risers board - up 2% or 5.1p to 211.3p - after Citigroup changed its recommendation from hold to buy and easyJet said passenger numbers rose by 12.2% to 3.35m in November. The budget airline's shares were 7.5p higher at 387.7p following the update.
The wider London market retreated in the first hour of trading, with the FTSE 100 index down 39.0 points at 5,273.9.
Traders however were holding their fire ahead of crucial US non-farm payrolls data at 13.30. Employers are expected to have shed by 130,000 in November, after a 190,000 decline in October.
'Markets will be waiting with some trepidation for the main news of the day which is the November non farm payroll figure published later on today,' said Arifa Sheikh-Usmani, sales trader at Spreadex.
'I would anticipate markets to be fairly sideways until that figure is published, or even weaker as people unwind positions,' she said.
Banks weighed on the FTSE 100 as it emerged that Royal Bank of Scotland expected to pay its investment bankers substantially less than rival institutions.
And it was revealed by the National Audit Office today that the price tag for bailing out UK banks has hit £850bn, but the final cost to taxpayers will not be known for years. Moreover, a survey showed that failing commercial property loans pose a growing threat to the banking sector revival, after the sum of debts breaching covenants soared by 75% to £18.7bn in the first half of 2009.
RBS shares were off 1p at 34.15p, while Lloyds Banking Group slipped 1.3p to 54.15p and Standard Chartered dropped 35.5p to 1534.5p.
Outside the top flight, shares in Rightmove fell for a second successive session amid speculation that internet giant Google is planning an assault on the online UK property market. Shares were down another 3% or 13.9p to 486p.
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