Headline shares ended a range-bound session just fractionally higher, with heavyweight mining issues recouping earlier losses, and Eurozone worries holding back banking stocks. At the close of business, the FTSE100 was up just 6.68 points at 5,069.61 with the FTSE250 ahead 30.63 points at 9,477.57 and the FTSE Smallcaps 34.14 points better at 2,765.6. US stocks were mostly lower in late morning trade, after encouraging existing housing data from the National Association of Realtors was overshadowed by concerns over European banks US financial regulation. Approaching the close in London, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 64 points at 10,130, the S&P500 fell 5 points to 1,083 and the Nasdaq Composite added 3 points at 2,232.
LONDON MARKETS
Early gains in London quickly evaporated as global growth concerns hit commodity prices and European debt problems climbed up the agenda again on news of the bail-out of a Spanish savings bank.
Mining shares ended mostly higher, with Anglo American (LON:AAL) the best of them, up 49p at 2,528p. Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) gained 50.5p at 2,959.5p and Kazakhmys (LON:KAZ) added 13p at 1,126p. Randgold Resources (LON:RRS) ticked up 90p at 5,750p as gold advanced to $1,193 an ounce. The oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico has cost BP (LON:BP.) about $760m to date, according to the latest estimates. The news pushed the shares down 13.7p at 493p, while Shell fell 31p at 1,713.5p in sympathy and as crude stalled at $70 a barrel.
Banking stocks came under pressure as the wider Eurozone worries played on sentiment, although Lloyds was the only casualty on the day, down 0.33p at 55.47p. Royal Bank Of Scotland Group Plc (LON:RBS) edged up 0.12p at 45.37p and Barclays (LON:BARC) added 1.95p at 300.85p.Also on the upside, insurer Prudential (LON:PRU) jumped 13p at 530p, after CEO Tidjane Thiam reported that he will put £1.5m of his own money into the rights issue to fund the $35.5bn bid for AIG's Asia business.
Holiday firms were brighter as news that the Icelandic volcano has stopped erupting gave rise to the prospect of the end of travel disruptions. Thomas Cook Group Plc (LON:TCG) rose 0.66p at 201.4p, Tui Travel Plc (LON:TT.) added 1.6p at 230.6p, while hotel group InterContinental rose 12.03p at 1,083p.
Investors shrugged off news of the commencement of cabin crew…
