London afternoon: Gains extended

4th Nov 2009 14:19

Expectations of a firmer start on Wall Street encouraged UK blue-chip prices to kick on over the lunch-time session, with miners and stores still leading the way,In the head to head battle between M&S and Next, shares in the latter are performing slightly better after the fashion chain upped its guidance for second half sales. Next reported better than expected sales in the third quarter. Retail like-for-like sales dropped 1.3% in the three months ended 31 October, while directory sales were up 5.1%, with both Next Retail and Next Directory performing ahead of the second half guidance the group gave in September.High street giant Marks & Spencer produced interim results right at the top of expectations, with underlying profits rising slightly as food sales improved for a fourth quarter in a row. Adjusted profit before tax was slightly ahead of last year at £298.3m. Most analysts had expected profits of about £290m.Trading conditions are also on the mend for shopping centre owner Liberty International. The retail tenant market still faces challenges but activity levels are on the up while the number of retailers going belly up declined substantially in the third quarter, the company said.Moderately encouraging consumer confidence figures published by the Nationwide business society attracted buyers for other retailers, most notably Argos and homebase owner Home Retail, fashion brand Burberry and department store Debenhams.The Nationwide index remained unchanged at 72 in October from September's level, but saw a slight improvement in the number of people expecting the economy to be in better shape in six months time.Life group Aviva is going well after chief executive Andrew Moss said, "The outlook for the group's total profitability in 2009 is good despite a reduction in sales driven by continuing customer caution and active management of sales volumes to optimise profitability".Mining stocks continue this week's see-saw performance, with today looking set to be an 'up' day. Kazakhmys, Fresnillo and Randgold Resources are the best performers.Guinness owner Diageo is tapping the bond market to raise half a billion dollars. The five-year US dollar-denominated bond carries a coupon of 3.25%.The Cadbury share price has softened after US company Kraft Foods, which is contemplating a bid for the UK confectioner, issued mildly disappointing results last night which reduced the value of the shares element of its mooted offer.Housebuilder Redrow said house sales in the second half of the year have been 'remarkably stable'. Net private reservations in the 18 weeks from 1 July have averaged 45 homes per week, even in the normally quiet months of July and August, and are 47% ahead of the corresponding period of last year.Redrow's sector peer, Taylor Wimpey, is also seeing conditions stabilising, with UK orders steady and selling prices 9% higher than the £163,000 average at the end of July. Barratt and Persimmon are also on the up, with the former saying it received 92.3% acceptances in respect of its recent £720m rights issue.Further good news on the housing front came in the form of an upbeat trading statement from property web site Rightmove, which had its busiest month ever in August.Cut price food and booze pubs group JD Wetherspoon reported a 0.3% rise in like-for-like sales in the first quarter and said it remains confident of the company's prospects for the full year.Defence and commercial aerospace equipment maker Cobham said revenue has grown strongly, broadly in line with company expectations in the first nine months of 2009, and expects the trend to continue in the final quarter.Shares in IT contracting company Logica are wanted after it said orders in the third quarter rose 6% while revenue for the period was in line with company expectations.Construction and regeneration group Morgan Sindall said Esteem, a joint venture comprising Morgan Sindall Investments (MSIL), Robertson Capital Projects and the Sewell Group, has been appointed as preferred bidder by Hull City Council for their £400m PFI Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme.Bus and rail company FirstGroup said first half profit dropped 44% as it was hit by higher fuel costs and sluggish sales at its North American Greyhound bus business.