LOSSES for consumer-facing firms failed to stop the London market making strong gains yesterday as oil and metal stocks traded higher.
A good start on Wall Street aided the momentum and helped the FTSE 100 index close 51.4 points, or almost 1 per
cent, higher at 5,371.8, clawing back some of Tuesday's 2.4 per cent slump.
But a raft of high street operators, including the likes of Marks & Spencer and Tesco, were on the back foot as indicators showed trading conditions remained tough.
Sentiment in the retail sector was not helped by the minutes of the Bank of England's interest rate meeting this month, which showed a rate cut this summer was unlikely.
David Fineberg, a dealer at CMC Markets, said: "Ongoing financial worries across the Atlantic had seemingly consigned the Footsie to a rather lacklustre finish but the bumper surplus of US oil does seem to have rescued the London index.
"(Today's] earnings news from ENRC and Persimmon should give two key sectors of the London market some notable direction in early trade."
Commodity-focused stocks accounted for the top six blue-chip risers in London last night, led by Rio Tinto which soared more than 7 per cent, or 345p, to 4,986p as metals prices advanced. It was followed by Eurasian Natural Resources, up 67p to 1,027p, and Rio Tinto's unwanted suitor BHP Billiton, which added 102p to 1,622p.
Oil topping some $117 a barrel before easing back slightly also aided energy-related stocks, with Tullow Oil up nearly 7 per cent, or 47.5p, to 741.5p.
On the flip side, British Airways was a notable faller, easing 4.25p to 240.25p. Cruise ship operator Carnival was also down, off 13p at 1,840p.
On the fallers' board, BT Group and Barclays dropped 12p to 165.3p and 9.25p to 315p respectively after the stocks began trading without the right to the latest dividend payments.
Analysts at Collins Stewart also voiced fears over BT's dividend outlook as cashflow comes under pressure from lower margins and higher capital expenditure.
Sainsbury's was down 12p to 314.75p after industry figures showed a fall in the grocer's market share from 16.1 to 15.8 per cent. Marks & Spencer fell 3.75p to 252p amid continued concern about the retailer's own performance, and Tesco joined the slide, falling 7.7p to 370.5p.
Another faller amid the economic worries was marketing services giant WPP, which dropped 5p to 480p.
The biggest faller in the FTSE 250 was Mecom – the media group run by former Mirror boss David Montgomery – as the stock was marked down after disappointing first-half results.
Shares fell nearly 16 per cent or 3.5p to 18.5p and depressed other stocks in the sector, with Trinity Mirror off 5.5p at 95p.
Takeover target Michael Page International went the other way, up 30.75p to 360.75p.
The full article contains 508 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
