FTSE up but investors jittery over Greek crisis
The FTSE 100 was up this morning but investors remained wary ahead of yet another chapter in the Greek financial crisis.
Greek MPs are due to debate a fresh package of austerity measures later.
The euro slipped as confidence in the eurozone continued to be sapped by Greece’s debt pile.
Meanwhile France’s Christine Lagarde was poised to become the IMF’s new leader – a key role in steering the eurozone economy away from disaster.
The biggest gainer on London’s blue chip index was safety testing firm Intertek Group, which rose by 0.9 per cent while Standard Chartered was up 0.89 per cent.
Developer British Land put on 0.8 per cent after reports that it is raising about $480m (£301m) through the US private placement bond market, diversifying its fund sourcing away from austerity-minded banks.
Drinks giant Diageo was also up after it revealed a plan to extend its whisky production in Scotland.
On the down side Drugmaker Astrazeneca lost more than one per cent.
But hedge fund giant Man Group was the biggest loser on London’s blue chip index, down 2.72 per cent.
Satellite navigation specialist Inmarsat dropped by 0.9 per cent after it was downgraded by Citigroup.
Tesco fell 0.8 per cent while insurer Aviva edged down by 0.6 per cent.
Most banks saw minor falls with Lloyds and Barclays marginally down while RBS dropped 0.7 per cent.
HSBC bucked the trend and edged up 0.3 per cent.
Meanwhile shares in FTSE-250 listed online delivery service Ocado dipped by eleven per cent despite the company edging into the black. The fall came as some analysts questioned the company’s growth potential in such a competitive market.
In UK economic news house prices in England and Wales have edged lower this month to show their biggest annual fall since October 2009, a monthly survey from property data company Hometrack showed.
Across the globe China’s announcement that it was likely to miss its inflation targets raised concerns over potential interest rate hikes in the country.
Asian markets dropped on closing, with the Nikkei in Tokyo dropping by one per cent. In a further blow ratings agency Moody’s warned Japan to speed up fiscal reform.