London midday: Gains erased with investors nervous ahead of ECB

3rd Apr 2014 12:05

- ECB in focus ahead of policy meeting- UK services PMI slips, US data ahead- Tullow and Standard Life upgraded- BSkyB drops on HSBC comments- Just Eat impresses with IPOtechMARK 2,776.98 -0.21%FTSE 100 6,657.60 -0.02%FTSE 250 16,390.84 -0.15%It was a choppy morning for UK equity markets on Thursday with stocks erasing early gains by lunchtime ahead of the European Central Bank (ECB) policy announcement.The FTSE 100 was broadly flat by midday, trading 1.44 points lower at 6,657.60, after having come off a high of 6,680.78 early on. The index closed at 6,659.04 on Wednesday, its highest finish since March 11th, when it ended at 6,685.52."European indices are treading water so far this morning, a clear sign that traders are in no mood to try and predict the outcome of the ECB meeting having found it so difficult in recent months," said Market Analyst Craig Erlam from Alpari.Traders were waiting to see whether policymakers will act to stem falling inflation in the Eurozone. While the consensus forecast is for no change from the ECB, expectations for some sort of monetary easing have increased this week. Consumer prices rose at an annual rate of just 0.5% in March, Eurostat data revealed on Monday, down from 0.8% growth the previous month and below consensus estimates.Nevertheless, ECB Vice President Vítor Constâncio attempted to quash concerns, saying that he doesn't see deflation as a risk for the single-currency area. He said that "the low figure of inflation in March will be corrected to a high figure in April".Economic data was also in focus today with the UK services purchasing managers' index (PMI) showing that growth unexpectedly eased in March to its slowest pace since last June. The PMI fell to 57.6 from 58.2 in February, below forecasts for the reading to remain unchanged.Stock futures Stateside were pointing to small gains of around 0.2% when Wall Street opens later on Thursday ahead of jobless claims figures, the US trade balance and the ISM non-manufacturing index.Asian markets moved higher overnight after a so-called "mini-stimulus" package in China reassured investors that policymakers were acting to prevent a sharp slowdown in economic growth. These measures included a tax cut for small businesses and higher funding for more low-income housing and infrastructure.Tullow, Standard Life helped by upgradesTullow Oil shares were making decent gains after UBS upgraded the stock from 'neutral' to 'buy'. The bank said that the investment case for the shares has changed and the risk/reward balance is "now skewed to the upside".Insurer Standard Life was also benefiting from an upgrade after Bernstein raised its rating to 'market perform'.BSkyB was trading in the red after analysts at HBSC said that concerns at the broadband and pay-TV group surrounding the upcoming auction of Premier League football rights are likely to resurface following the stock's recent rally. The bank kept an 'underweight' rating on the shares.B&Q and Screwfix owner Kingfisher was higher after revealing that it is in exclusive negotiations to buy French home improvement retailer Mr Bricolage, which would add a third business to its two existing brands in the country.Specialist healthcare group BTG was in demand after saying it expects full-year sales to be at the top end of the guidance after a "transformational year". Revenues for the financial year to March 31st are expected to be at the upper end of the £275-285m guidance range, up from £234m the year before.Homeware retailer Dunelm gained after total revenue for the third quarter grew nearly 10%. The company said that with opportunities to expand its portfolio it is confident in its growth prospects.Online takeaway service Just Eat floated on the London Stock Exchange at 260p a share on Thursday, at the top end of its expectations. The pricing gave it a market valuation of £1.47bn, marking the biggest initial public offering seen for a UK technology firm in the past eight years. The stock jumped as high as 10% in morning trade.FTSE 100 - RisersTullow Oil (TLW) 791.00p +5.05%Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 434.60p +4.72%Kingfisher (KGF) 440.80p +2.23%SABMiller (SAB) 3,042.00p +1.50%Associated British Foods (ABF) 2,788.00p +1.16%Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,405.00p +1.08%Carnival (CCL) 2,342.00p +1.04%Rexam (REX) 495.90p +0.94%Next (NXT) 6,690.00p +0.91%Imperial Tobacco Group (IMT) 2,440.00p +0.78%FTSE 100 - FallersBritish Sky Broadcasting Group (BSY) 896.50p -2.45%Anglo American (AAL) 1,522.50p -1.39%Rio Tinto (RIO) 3,333.00p -1.30%Mondi (MNDI) 1,062.00p -1.03%Intertek Group (ITRK) 3,003.00p -0.99%Royal Mail (RMG) 556.50p -0.98%SSE (SSE) 1,468.00p -0.94%BAE Systems (BA.) 409.50p -0.94%Antofagasta (ANTO) 848.50p -0.93%Sage Group (SGE) 414.70p -0.86%FTSE 250 - RisersImagination Technologies Group (IMG) 227.00p +6.47%Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 1,337.00p +4.29%Alent (ALNT) 321.00p +3.88%ITE Group (ITE) 195.10p +2.96%Just Retirement Group (JRG) 141.60p +2.53%BTG (BTG) 554.50p +2.50%Dunelm Group (DNLM) 993.50p +2.26%Intermediate Capital Group (ICP) 459.40p +2.11%888 Holdings (888) 150.60p +1.96%Homeserve (HSV) 316.00p +1.87%FTSE 250 - FallersSt. Modwen Properties (SMP) 380.70p -4.11%Infinis Energy (INFI) 226.30p -3.91%Vedanta Resources (VED) 900.00p -2.49%Aveva Group (AVV) 2,031.00p -2.26%Domino Printing Sciences (DNO) 785.00p -2.18%Catlin Group Ltd. (CGL) 510.00p -2.11%Telecity Group (TCY) 695.50p -2.11%Provident Financial (PFG) 1,912.00p -1.90%Countrywide (CWD) 652.50p -1.88%Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 2,579.00p -1.86%BC