SABMiller lifts FTSE 100
The leading share index was trading up this morning, as brewer SABMiller led the FTSE 100 up.
Headline mining shares were also among the gainers this morning, as a return to growth in Chinese manufacturing activity boosted demand for metal companies.
On the FTSE All-Share, Mothercare jumped almost nine per cent, on news that first-half losses had narrowed thanks to its turnaround plan.
SABMiller rose 5.13 per cent, as this morning it reported a 12 per cent jump in pre-tax profits. Holiday company Thomas Cook was up 4.65 per cent.
Hedge fund manager Man Group increased 4.24 per cent, while electricals retailer Dixons rose 3.84 per cent.
Steelmaker Evraz and iron ore producer Ferrexpo added 3.4 per cent and 2.69 per cent respectively.
At the other end of the spectrum, LSL Property sank 5.28 per cent.
Miner Hochschild dropped 2.74 per cent, while miner Talvivaara lost 2.22 per cent. Yesterday the company said it could restart its metals plant in Finland after a toxic waste water leakage.
Engineering consultancy Ricardo sank 2.46 per cent.
Elsewhere, digital media firm Perform fell 1.76 per cent and recruiter SThree lost 1.32 per cent.
UK banking shares had a mixed morning. HSBC gained 0.03 per cent and Lloyds Banking Group was up 0.35 per cent in early deals, while RBS was down 0.21 per cent and Barclays lost 0.4 per cent.
In Asia, the Nikkei closed up 1.56 per cent at a six and a half month closing high, while in the US the Dow Jones closed up 0.38 per cent.