This Morning in London major shares opened higher, following a rally late on Wall Street yesterday. Retail sales data will be providing the main focus in the UK on the last full day of trading before Christmas. Notable gainers in early trade in London included Vodafone (VOD), up 2.5p at 187.5p. Banks gained, including Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), up 7p at 436.75p and index heavyweight HSBC (HSBA), up 7p at 849p. Among the few on the downside, Wolseley (WOS) fell 12p pence to 708p pence after Deutsche Bank cut it to 'hold' from 'buy' with a reduced target price of 763p. At 8:40 the FTSE-100 was up 66.2 points at 6,411.8, having risen 61.1 points yesterday to close at 6,345.6. The FTSE-250 was up 83.6 points at 10,480.8.
BROKER RECOMMENDATIONS
Citigroup has downgraded Bovis (BVS) to sell from hold and has initiated coverage of Hiscox (HSX) appending a hold recommendation and a 265p price target.
Credit Suisse reiterates neutral on BT Group (BT.A) (cutting the price target to 300p from 330p and reducing estimates).
Goldman has neutral on HSBC (HSBA) (cutting the price target to 1007p from 1041p) and Standard Chartered (STAN) (raising the price target to 2065p from 1987p).
HSBC reiterates underweight on Peter Hambro Mining (POG) (cutting the price target to 1000p from 1300p).
Merrill reiterates buy LogicaCMG (LOG) (cutting the price target to 162p from 190p).
JP Morgan has issued a review of the UK Pubs & Restaurants Sector, in which they have downgraded Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) to underweight from overweight, Marston’s (MARS) to underweight from neutral, Enterprise Inns (ETI) to neutral from overweight and have upgraded Restaurant Group (RTN) to overweight from neutral.
SG Securities says buy Kesa Electricals (KESA) (cutting the price target to 328p).
NEWS ROUND-UP
Last Night in New York stocks finished higher, as blow-out profits from software-maker Oracle and hopes of more fireworks from Research In Motion after the close helped overcome continuing troubles in the financial sector. Stocks struggled for most of the session after bond insurer MBIA reported a large exposure to risky debt and Bear Stearns posted its first-ever quarterly loss. But while the market already expects slowing U.S. growth and more damage from the credit crisis, some investors still hope that technology firms and other multinationals can benefit from global growth. The Dow Jones finished up 38 points at 13,245. The S&P, which has a large proportion of financial stocks still gained 7.1 points to 1,460, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq led the market, gaining 39.9 points to 2,640.
On this day in:-
1997 - The Spice Girls knock The Teletubbies off the top of the Great British pop charts to land the coveted Christmas Day No 1 single, for the second year running, with 'Too Much'.
1993 - American newspapers reported allegations that both US President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary have committed adultery.
1990 - Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein said he would ignore the United Nations deadline to pull his invasion troops out of Kuwait.
1988 - Terrorists blew up a Pan-Am jumbo jet carrying more than 270 passengers and crew as it flew over the Scottish town of Lockerbie. All on board are killed as well as 11 people in the town when the plane crashes.
1958 - Charles de Gaulle was elected the first president of the French Fifth Republic.
1937 - Walt Disney's first full-length colour animated cartoon, “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” premiered in Los Angeles, America.
1913 - The first crossword puzzle was published in the New York World. The puzzle had been compiled by Liverpool-born Arthur Wynne.
1905 - Japan declared Korea a protectorate.
1879 - The first performance took place of Ibsen's “A Doll's House” at the Royalty Theatre Copenhagen.
1846 - Robert Lister used an anaesthetic (ether) for the first time in Great Britain during an operation at University College Hospital, London, to amputate a leg.
1620 - The Pilgrim Fathers arrived at Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts, aboard The Mayflower. Passengers and crew had increased to 103 after 2 births on the voyage from Plymouth, England.
