London midday: Banks drag Footsie lower

24th Jan 2012 11:44

- Banks sold off as Greek talks continue. - S&P downgrades three French banks. - Defensives in demand.The banks had dragged London's blue chip index to its lowest levels of the day by lunchtime as eyes continued to be fixed on the Eurozone. While the attention seems to be mostly on Greece, the downgrade of three French banks has not do much to help the mood. Meanwhile, US stock futures are pointing to a poor start on Wall Street ahead of a busy day on the corporate from with giants like Johnson & Johnson and McDonalds waiting to report. ALL EYES ON THE EUROZONEDespite banks and other private institutions represented by the Institute of International Finance (IIF) having presented yesterday what they considered to be their "maximum offer that is consistent with the voluntary debt exchange", Eurozone finance ministers could not be coerced to sign off on the proposal for Greek debt and responded with a resounding "no". According to Barclays Capital analyst Cagdas Aksu, "it seems the negotiations are stuck mainly around the coupon of the new bonds, with the Greek government offering 3.5% while the private investors want at least a 4% coupon." The Eurogroup members that met yesterday in Brussels decided to back Athens. Its president, Jean-Claude Juncker, agreed that the Greek coupons need to be below 3.5% for the debt to be paid up to 2020 and that it should be below 4% for the full 30 year life of the bonds.Meanwhile, Societe Generale, Credit Agricole and Group BPCE are the first major French banks to have their ratings cut after France lost its own triple-A rating. The ratings agency explained that the new ratings incorporate one level of government support rather than two levels that an AAA-rated sovereign would provide.In other news, concerns over Portugal's finances have also arisen. The country may need a second bailout if it does not raise the necessary financing on the open market next year. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) has reported that there are concerns amongst some market participants that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will impose new requirements on the Iberian nation if it becomes apparent that it is unable to return to the market next year.BANKS DRAG FOOTSIE LOWERUK banking giants Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays were leading the fallers on the FTSE 100 by midday, falling in sympathy with their European counterparts as the debt crisis rages on. Other financial stocks didn't fare much better with Ashmore and Hargreaves Lansdown out of favour after RBS analysts downgraded their ratings on both stocks.Cairn Energy was also a poor performer after withdrawing its proposal to give its non-executive Chairman, Sir Bill Gammell, share options worth £2.5m after institutional shareholders opposed the move.Defensives were very much in demand with utilities stocks International Power, National Grid and SSE among the high risers.Accountancy software group Sage underwhelmed investors after saying that trading since the beginning of October has been in line with expectations, while Land Securities was also lower after announcing a change at the Chief Executive Officer position.FTSE 250 MOVERS: CHEMRING & MINERS SOLD OFF Military equipment maker Chemring was the heavy faller after its Chairman said that the "continuing problems of the Eurozone and the impact of possible sequestration in the US indicate that our traditional markets will not be any easier this year". Nevertheless, the firm saw an improvement in full-year underlying profit and revenue. Mining peers New World Resources, Talvivaara and African Barrick Gold were also among the worst performers. However Allied Gold bucked the trend to nudge higher after saying it aims to up production by 75% in 2012 as it improves recovery methods and efficiency. PZ Cussons, the 'Imperial Leather' soap maker, warned that full-year profits will be at the lower end of market expectations, as it struggles with problems largely beyond its control, including civil unrest in Nigeria, its largest market. BCFTSE 100 - RisersWeir Group (WEIR) 1,932.00p +2.55%International Power (IPR) 327.90p +2.37%Diageo (DGE) 1,412.00p +1.77%National Grid (NG.) 623.50p +1.55%Centrica (CNA) 286.40p +1.42%Severn Trent (SVT) 1,538.00p +1.38%BT Group (BT.A) 208.80p +1.26%SSE (SSE) 1,251.00p +1.21%Essar Energy (ESSR) 137.00p +1.03%British American Tobacco (BATS) 2,975.00p +0.90%FTSE 100 - FallersLloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 30.88p -5.23%Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 26.81p -4.73%Barclays (BARC) 213.90p -3.93%GKN (GKN) 206.70p -3.59%Capital Shopping Centres Group (CSCG) 321.10p -3.54%Cairn Energy (CNE) 282.80p -3.22%Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 433.60p -2.85%Ashmore Group (ASHM) 353.30p -2.83%Kazakhmys (KAZ) 1,101.00p -2.82%IMI (IMI) 833.00p -2.57%FTSE 250 - RisersJD Sports Fashion (JD.) 739.00p +4.23%Carpetright (CPR) 624.00p +2.80%Heritage Oil (HOIL) 204.40p +2.77%EnQuest (ENQ) 109.90p +1.85%Pennon Group (PNN) 694.50p +1.68%Drax Group (DRX) 518.00p +1.57%Phoenix Group Holdings (DI) (PHNX) 572.50p +1.51%Centamin (DI) (CEY) 94.60p +1.28%Brown (N.) Group (BWNG) 235.40p +1.16%Daejan Holdings (DJAN) 2,876.00p +0.98%FTSE 250 - FallersChemring Group (CHG) 392.30p -12.63%Cable & Wireless Worldwide (CW.) 21.70p -9.21%Talvivaara Mining Company (TALV) 333.70p -7.07%Logica (LOG) 76.40p -6.49%Aquarius Platinum Ltd. (AQP) 177.60p -5.03%PZ Cussons (PZC) 296.20p -4.76%New World Resources A Shares (NWR) 448.00p -4.68%Ocado Group (OCDO) 82.15p -4.03%Bwin.party Digital Entertainment (BPTY) 152.30p -3.91%SIG (SHI) 101.00p -3.90%