Insurers, Miners, Birmingham City Surge in UK

Mayank Mehta
21 Aug, 2009
New York City

Resources and energy companies led the gainers in London trading. The benchmark index FTSE 100 index surged 2% and for the week added 2.9% to 4,850.89. The index crossed 4,800 for the first time in eleven months. Legal & General, Aviva and Prudential closed higher.

[R]4:00PM London, 11:00 AM New York – Resources and energy companies led the gainers in London trading. The benchmark index FTSE 100 index surged 2% and for the week added 2.9%.[/R]

UK stocks extended early gains are the release of existing home sales report in the U.S.

In London FTSE 100 Index closed higher 93.70 or 1.9% to 4,850.14 and the pound unchanged at $1.65 and 1.15 euros.

Miners led the gainers. Antofagasta added 3.2% to 780.5 pence, Anglo American increased 3.6% to 1,984 pence after copper, zinc and aluminum closed higher in London trading.

Gainers & Losers

Birmingham City surged 41% to 91 pence after the football club received an offer from Hong Kong based businessman Carson Yeung that valued the share at 100 pence or £81.5 million. The offer has received 79.9% acceptance according to the statement released Hong Kong controlled Grandtop International.

Grandtop in rights offering plans to raise $104 million or HK$801 million.

Candover Investments plc added 9.3% to 435.00 pence an investment company said first-half net loss was £27.1 million or 124 pence per diluted share compared to net profit of £4.5 million or 21 pence per share a year ago.

Kentz Corporation Limited surged 6.2% to 170.00 pence after the engineering group said through its Australian arm Kentz (pty) Ltd, has been awarded a A$125 million telecommunications contract by Chevron Australia Pty Ltd for the Gorgon Project in Western Australia.

Pure Wafer plc rose 27% to 2.75 pence after the silicon wafer reclaim specialist plans to raise £2.3 million offering that prices each share at 2 pence.

Rio Tinto plc fell 0.9% to 2,311.50 pence after the mining giant received a clearance from the US regulators on the pending sale of its Jacobs Ranch coal mine to Arch Coal, Inc. The $761 million deal was announced in March.

Rightmove Group Plc gained 12.7% to 483.00 pence after the residential property industry said first-half revenues fell 11% to £33.6 million from $37.8 million a year ago. Net profit for the first-half rose 3.2% to £13.0 million or 11.90 pence per diluted share compared to net profit of £12.6 million or 10.57 pence per share a year ago.

SkyePharma PLC advanced 0.9% to 103.00 pence after the drug delivery specialist said first-half revenues fell 10% to £25.5 million from $28.4 million a year ago. Net loss for the first-half was £6.1 million or 26.7 pence per diluted share compared to net loss of £6.8 million or 84.0 pence per share a year ago.

Stobart Group Limited plunged 0.4% to 107.50 pence after the transport and logistics company today predicting a strong second half.

T. Clarke plc climbed 4.0% to 130.00 pence after the electrical contractor said first-half revenues fell 12.4% to £95.8 million from $109.3 million a year ago. Pre-tax profit for the first-half fell 42.6% to £3.1 million or 5.3 pence per diluted share compared to net profit of £5.2 million or 5.4 pence per share a year ago.