London close: Stocks maintain gains despite mixed data

14th Aug 2012 17:06

- Eurozone GDP in line- German and French data beats expectations- UK inflation rises in JulySome better-than-expected economic growth data from Germany and France helped UK stocks hold on to gains on Tuesday; although London's benchmark index, the FTSE 100, was trading within a narrow range of about 20 points for most of today's session."However, [the growth figures] don't disguise the fact that the growth gap is getting wider between the core European countries and the peripheral economies currently buckling under austerity programs and lower tax revenues," said market analyst Michael Hewson from CMC Markets."Volumes continue to be exceedingly light as yesterday the FTSE posted its lowest volume day, excluding Xmas trading, since 1999. This in itself isn't exactly a ringing endorsement of market confidence in a positive outcome to this current mid-summer lull," he said.German economic growth slowed down from 0.5% to 0.3% in the second quarter of 2012, but economists were expecting gross domestic product (GDP) to increase by just 0.2%. France, on the other hand, registered its third consecutive quarter of zero growth although this was still better than the 0.1% contraction that the experts were expecting. As for the Eurozone as a whole, second-quarter GDP contracted by 0.2% from the previous three months (down 0.4% year-on-year), according to a 'flash' estimate by Eurostat, in line with consensus forecasts.In contrast, a key measure of sentiment in Germany missed expectations in August, it was revealed today. The German ZEW index fell to -25.5, from -19.6 in July; the consensus estimate was for a small improvement to -19.3."This afternoon sentiment in Germany fall at its fastest rate since December, when the ECB first offered the three year LTRO's for the first time. This could lead to suggestions that it's time we see the ECB intervene once more in order to stabilise the area. Without it, we are likely to see the decline of the global recovery, with the US, China and Japan seeing growth slowing," said analyst Craig Erlam from Alpari.In domestic news, the UK Consumer Prices Index (CPI) rose at an annual rate of 2.6% in July - wrong-footing experts who had forecast a fall to 2.3%. The wider Retail Prices Index (RPI) rose 3.2%, up from 2.8% in June. FTSE 100: Standard Life jumps after resultsLife assurance behemoth Standard Life jumped as it saw profits rise in the first half after a strong performance in the UK, its biggest market. Operating profit before tax was up 15% with assets under administration 3% higher than the year before. United Utilities was putting in an impressive performance today on the back of rumours that overseas investor from Canada and the Middle-Easy are eyeing up the company as a break-up candidate. Sector peers Severn Trent and Pennon were also wanted. ???Anglo-Swedish drugs colossus AstraZeneca raised earnings guidance a tad after signing a deal with US pharmaceuticals titan Pfizer, pushing shares higher. ??Russian steel giant Evraz advanced after saying that a strike Highveld Steel and Vanadium operations in South Africa is now over and production has been resumed. ??Terrestrial broadcaster ITV gained after Nomura upgraded the stock late last night from 'neutral' to 'buy', saying that the current share price "does not reflect the significant improvements in ITV's underlying business or potential optionality." ??Building materials group CRH dropped after poor weather and tough economic conditions in Europe saw earnings slip in the first half of the year. EBITDA fell 1% year-on-year in the six months to June 30th, more or less in line with the company's guidance in May of "close to last year's level". FTSE 250: Lonmin drops after strikes and delays Platinum group metals (PGMs) producer Lonmin was leading the fallers on the second-tier index after reporting a "serious and ongoing outbreak of violence" at its West Marikana mine operations in South Africa, killing seven Lonmin workers and two policemen. ??Heading the other way was Egypt-focused gold miner Centamin which has stuck with its production guidance after second quarter output hit record levels. ??Scottish distribution firm John Menzies was out of favour after seeing revenues fall in the first half as the firm was hit by tough economic conditions and a weak euro. FTSE 100 - RisersStandard Life (SL.) 277.40p +8.06%United Utilities Group (UU.) 722.50p +4.86%Pennon Group (PNN) 766.50p +4.21%Severn Trent (SVT) 1,766.00p +3.40%Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,370.00p +2.74%Prudential (PRU) 824.00p +2.36%ITV (ITV) 84.65p +1.93%Tesco (TSCO) 335.00p +1.79%GKN (GKN) 219.00p +1.77%Evraz (EVR) 273.20p +1.75%FTSE 100 - FallersCRH (CRH) 1,160.00p -4.84%Eurasian Natural Resources Corp. (ENRC) 414.70p -1.82%Vedanta Resources (VED) 960.00p -1.74%Fresnillo (FRES) 1,545.00p -1.21%Kingfisher (KGF) 285.90p -1.04%Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 6,215.00p -1.03%Tate & Lyle (TATE) 658.50p -0.90%Kazakhmys (KAZ) 733.00p -0.74%SABMiller (SAB) 2,801.00p -0.64%Pearson (PSON) 1,225.00p -0.57%FTSE 250 - RisersGalliford Try (GFRD) 641.00p +5.08%JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 692.00p +3.75%Kier Group (KIE) 1,300.00p +2.69%Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust (ASL) 629.00p +2.61%Shanks Group (SKS) 82.05p +2.56%Millennium & Copthorne Hotels (MLC) 484.70p +2.47%COLT Group SA (COLT) 122.70p +2.42%Henderson Group (HGG) 108.00p +2.37%Salamander Energy (SMDR) 201.60p +2.33%Carpetright (CPR) 618.00p +2.32%FTSE 250 - FallersLonmin (LMI) 708.50p -4.39%Avocet Mining (AVM) 90.00p -3.12%Kenmare Resources (KMR) 39.20p -3.07%Dunelm Group (DNLM) 575.00p -2.54%Aquarius Platinum Ltd. (AQP) 36.53p -2.06%Howden Joinery Group (HWDN) 141.80p -1.87%Heritage Oil (HOIL) 164.10p -1.80%BH Global Ltd. USD Shares (BHGU) 11.3 -1.65%Menzies(John) (MNZS) 620.00p -1.59%Cape (CIU) 192.50p -1.58%BC