Markets: Aggreko rises as index stays volatile

TEMPORARY power supplier Aggreko stood out among the Scottish stocks yesterday after analysts at Credit Suisse upgraded their recommendation on the Glasgow-based firm.

The broker upped its rating to "out-perform" from "neutral" and raised its target price to 2,000p from 1,847p, sending shares up 6.3 per cent or 111p to 1,879p, making Aggreko one of the top-five risers in the Footsie.

Fellow Scottish stock Weir Group was also near the top of the table, up 6.5 per cent or 117p at 1,907p, as the Glasgow-based engineering giant continues to recover from last week's heavy falls amid wider market turmoil.

The FTSE 100 index closed up 3 per cent or 157.2 points at 5,320.03 after figures showed US retail sales rose by a better-than-expected 0.5 per cent in July, giving Wall Street an early boost.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average has risen by more than 400 points in the past four days of trading - the first time it has done so in the index's 115-year history - and moved higher again in morning trade with a rise of about 180 points.

France's CAC-40 was also 4 per cent higher after a week dominated by rumours regarding the health of the country's banking sector, while indices in Italy, Spain and Germany also showed healthy gains.

Tom Walker, manager at the Martin Currie Portfolio Investment Trust, said: "Markets are still fluctuating wildly from day-to-day and are likely to remain volatile for a while.

"We believe that global equities, which were attractive before this correction, represent even better value now."

The pound also rose strongly against the euro at €1.14, though sterling was steadier against the dollar at $1.63.

The relief rally in London was reflected in advances for banking and mining stocks, with Barclays ahead 9.4p at 187.2p, Royal Bank of Scotland 1.22p higher at 26.5p, Lloyds Banking Group up 1.6p at 33.8p and among the miners Kazakhmys 60.5p stronger at 1,015p, Rio Tinto up 157p at 3,688.5p and Glencore up 24p at 406.7p.

In a quiet session for corporate news, shares in Trinity Mirror jumped 18 per cent or 6.8p to 45p after the newspaper publisher said circulation revenues had been boosted by improved Sunday sales following the demise of the News of the World. Pre-tax profits dropped 17 per cent to 41.9 million in the 26 weeks to 3 July.

Other risers outside the top flight included Spirit Pub as the managed pub operator, which demerged from Punch Taverns earlier this month, showed signs of recovery after a weak start to trading.The stock jumped 17 per cent or 6.7p to 46.7p, while Punch was flat at 11.5p.

Sports Direct International shares were 5.5p higher at 211.4p after the Office of Fair Trading said it had dropped its two-year investigation into allegations of anti-competitive practices in the sports goods sector.

JJB Sports, which was also involved in the inquiry, added 3.3p to 22.5p - an improvement of nearly 17 per cent.

Sentiment towards online grocer Ocado remained weak after house broker Goldman Sachs sharply downgraded its forecasts for the company. Ocado's shares were 180p at its float last year but were down a further 7.1p to 125.4p.