London open: Stocks rebound, Logica rockets after CGI bid

Date: Thursday 31 May 2012

- Logica jumps 64pc after bid
- Eyes on Ireland as public votes on fiscal treaty
- Eurobonds still a possibility

The FTSE 100 rebounded on Thursday morning following a sharp fall the day before, but gains were only modest as uncertainty over the Eurozone continues to weigh heavily on investors' minds.

Ireland is holding a referendum on the fiscal treaty; opinion polls over the weekend suggest that 60% of voters will vote in favour of the treaty. Also helping sentiment this morning were German retail sales which rose for a second straight month in April.

Turning to Spain, the European Commission said yesterday that it may give the country an extra year to cut its deficit to 3%, easing the pressure on Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy.

The possibility of implementing jointly issued Eurozone debt remains a possibility, according to Eurogroup President Jean-Claude Juncker. “The solution of eurobonds to relaunch growth in Europe is still on the table,” said Juncker in a news conference.

In domestic news, UK house prices rose slightly in May, as a squeeze in new properties on the market kept demand high, according to the Nationwide house price index. The average price of a house rose 0.3% between April and May to £166,022 from £164,134.

FTSE 100: Miners on the up

Mining stocks were making gains early on, following a sell-off the day before. Vedanta was among the best performers after announcing that shareholders will get to vote on changes to the group's structure, including the merger of its two subsidiaries Sesa Goa and Sterlite, on June 15th. Sector peers Polymetal and Randgold Resources were also higher.

DIY retailer Kingfisher was in demand despite poor weather dampening sales in the 13 weeks to April 28th, the company's first quarter. Revenues fell 3.6% during period, with like-for-like sales down 4.8%.

Financial services giant Prudential rose after announcing that it is to get its hands on Reassure American Life Insurance Company (REALIC) through the acquisition of its US holding company from Swiss Re for £398m in cash.

Sweeteners firm Tate and Lyle reported full-year profit numbers in line with expectations as it saw steady top-line growth across a number of its markets. Shares edged higher early on.

FTSE 250: Logica soars on agreed bid

Business consultancy Logica rocketed early on after news of an agreed bid from Canada's CGI Group. Information technology and business process services provider CGI is offering 105p cash per Logica share, valuing the company at around £1.7bn.

Heading the other way was car and bike parts retailer Halfords after it reported a 20% drop in full-year pre-tax profit, warning that retail sales in the 2013 fiscal year have so far been very disappointing.


FTSE 100 - Risers
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 1,502.00p +4.45%
Vedanta Resources (VED) 960.50p +2.13%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 25.75p +1.82%
Tullow Oil (TLW) 1,453.00p +1.82%
Sage Group (SGE) 255.10p +1.80%
Man Group (EMG) 72.80p +1.53%
BG Group (BG.) 1,242.50p +1.51%
Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 5,180.00p +1.47%
Tesco (TSCO) 301.05p +1.35%
Ashmore Group (ASHM) 335.80p +1.30%

FTSE 100 - Fallers
ITV (ITV) 74.50p -3.62%
Admiral Group (ADM) 1,090.00p -2.59%
Shire Plc (SHP) 1,831.00p -1.61%
CRH (CRH) 1,106.00p -1.34%
WPP (WPP) 779.00p -0.76%
Next (NXT) 2,992.00p -0.70%
Schroders (Non-Voting) (SDRC) 979.00p -0.66%
IMI (IMI) 882.50p -0.56%
Smiths Group (SMIN) 1,010.00p -0.49%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 330.60p -0.48%

FTSE 250 - Risers
Logica (LOG) 107.80p +64.08%
Ruspetro (RPO) 158.00p +4.29%
Premier Oil (PMO) 347.50p +3.89%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 1,247.00p +3.74%
Savills (SVS) 325.00p +3.17%
Regus (RGU) 89.55p +2.40%
Petropavlovsk (POG) 370.10p +2.32%
RPC Group (RPC) 381.50p +2.31%
Hunting (HTG) 832.00p +2.15%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 717.00p +2.14%

FTSE 250 - Fallers
Halfords Group (HFD) 256.50p -7.03%
Home Retail Group (HOME) 74.65p -2.55%
Dunelm Group (DNLM) 480.40p -1.84%
Essar Energy (ESSR) 140.10p -1.20%
Daejan Holdings (DJAN) 2,752.00p -1.18%
Kesa Electricals (KESA) 48.98p -1.13%
Euromoney Institutional Investor (ERM) 755.50p -0.98%
WH Smith (SMWH) 493.60p -0.92%
Electra Private Equity (ELTA) 1,565.00p -0.82%
SVG Capital (SVI) 259.00p -0.73%

BC

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