FTSE enjoying Friday feeling
The London market enjoyed a strong end to the week today as some rare good news from the US cheered traders.
A broad range of FTSE 100 Index stocks made advances through the morning after investors took heart from Wall Street’s Dow Jones Industrial Average closing above the 13,000 mark for the first time since January.
Falling oil prices and better news on the inflation front helped buoy the mood across the Atlantic, and London’s Footsie responded to stand 61.2 points higher at 6148.5 by mid-morning.
The optimism boosted building hire firm Wolseley, which generates much of its turnover in North America. The stock stood nearly 4% higher, a gain of 20p to 520p. Some of the shine rubbed off on B&Q owner Kingfisher, which added 5.1p to 136.1p.
Other retailers were also enjoying a run amid the positive mood, including Marks & Spencer which was 20p ahead at 401p, and Argos owner Home Retail Group which added 8p to 264.75p.
But they were beaten to the top of the Footsie risers board by fashion chain Next, which rose 76p to 1223p ahead of a trading update planned for next week.
There was also a bright start for Dairy Milk maker Cadbury, which began life as a pure confectionery firm after spinning off its American drinks arm. Shares were 8p higher at 630p.
Retreating oil prices, which this week neared the 120 dollar a barrel mark, saw a host of energy stocks lose ground. The biggest top flight fall came from British Energy group which dipped 2%, or 18p to 740p.
BG Group was also down 15p at 1245p as investors continued to raise concerns about its offer for Australian firm Origin. Fellow prospector Cairn Energy slipped 19p to 3061p, with Royal Dutch Shell also losing 3p to 2006p.
