London midday: Good day in light trading

16th Jul 2010 12:16

London's blue chips are having a good day, largely on the back of BP shares' enthusiastic response to the better news coming out of the Gulf of Mexico.BP yesterday succeeded in stopping the flow of oil pouring into the Gulf of Mexico for the first time in three months. The shutdown is part of an "integrity test" to see if the leaking wellhead can finally be contained. The test started last night and will last at least 6 hours and could last up to 48 hours. It is expected that no oil will be released into the ocean during the test.Investors applauded luxury brands group Burberry's decision to take its franchised stores in China under its own control as part of a move to unify its brand globally. Burberry will pay £70m in cash, subject to completion adjustments, for the 50 stores. The transaction is expected to add up to £20m to group operating profit in financial year 2011/12.Accountancy software provider Sage has named Guy Berruyer, currently head of its mainland Europe & Asia operations, as the man to take over from chief executive Paul Walker. Berruyer has spent 13 years at the firm, joining to run its French operations in 1997. He made it to the board in January 2000.British Airways got a boost from a SocGen upgrade to "buy", while Goldman Sachs gave the whole airline sector a lift. It especially likes EasyJet, but said overall business traffic and cargo demand is "vigorously strong" after last year's depressed numbers. In the FTSE 250, instrumentation and controls company Spectris is higher after a positive update. It expects full year results to be ahead of expectations after an 'encouraging' first half. The group said it is continuing to see an improvement in demand over the prior year, with signs of recovery throughout most regions and end markets. Talks to sell Candover to a Candian pension fund have collapsed, leaving the future of the struggling private equity group even more uncertain. Alberta Investment Management approached the venture capitalist over a possible takeover and cash injection in April, but after formal talks started, the discussions have unwound.Data storage specialist Telecity is up again after yesterday's bid talk. Asset under management fell 7.2% at fixed income fund manager BlueBay Asset Management during the fourth quarter due to foreign exchange issues, but still predicts a big increase in full-year profit. At the end of June, the company had $34.3bn of assets under management, down from $37bn on 31 March, but up 41% on the same time last year.Clapham House, the restaurant chain behind Gourmet Burger Kitchen and The Real Greek, posted a rise in revenues and profits in the year to March 28, but warned of challenging conditions to come. Pre-tax profits climbed to £1.5m from £1m the previous year as revenues rose to £44.5m from £42.7m.