London open: Flat start for Footsie

2nd Dec 2009 08:41

London's blue chips have made a flat start despite gains for miners as gold hit a new record high.The metal rose above $1,200 per ounce again overnight in Asia as investors sought refuge from a weak dollar and Dubai's woes. Lonmin, Vedanta and Kazakhmys are all going well.Offsetting that are some big hitters going ex-dividend today. They include National Grid, LSE and AB Foods.In corporate news, Irish budget airline Aer Lingus is closing down loss-making routes and will start making compulsory redundancies after failing to reach a deal with the unions over cost savings. The carrier said it had "narrowed the gap" with most union groups, but had met stiff opposition from unions representing pilots and cabin crew.Newcastle-based accountancy software firm Sage upped its dividend and said conditions have stabilised in the second half. The total dividend has been increased by 3% to 7.43p per share (2008: 7.21p per share). The group said the rise is reflecting the strength of cash flows and its robust business performance.Stockbroker and fund manager Brewin Dolphin saw profits slide in the year to September 27 after one of the most tumultuous periods for the financial services industry. Pre-tax profits fell to £21.9m from £32m, even as total income climbed to £212.3m from £206.5m.Rival Numis slumped to a loss of over £10m last year as write-downs on its investment portfolio and fewer company listings took their toll. Brewer Greene King is up again on favourable comment after yesterday's results. Carillion said the City of Toronto has appointed Carillion Canada as construction manager for the revitalisation of the City's Union Station, a 5-year project valued at around £360m. Regeneration developments around the 2012 Olympics site helped Telford Homes, which builds homes in East London, buck the general gloom in the housebuilding sector to post a surge in profits. In the six months to September 30, Telford posted a rise in pre-tax profits to £6.5m from £0.3m on revenues that climbed to £85.9m from £35.6m. The strong results prompted it to reinstate its dividend payment at 0.75p.