Johnson Matthey Share News (JMAT)

-PBoC cuts rates-BoE maintains rates and QE-Investors digest stimulus speculation-Stocks react positively to Spanish debt auctionThe FTSE 100 index was trading close to its intraday high by Thursday lunchtime despite weakness in the mining sector; the Bank of England revealed at noon that it has maintained its Bank Rate at 0.5 per cent and its asset purchase programme at 325bn pounds.One minute before the Bank's decision, however, the People's Bank of China announced the first reduction in its key policy rate since 2008, sending the top share index spiking higher. Back in the UK, some economists were calling for a rate cut, though most were expecting the status quo to be unchanged. Amongst the former, and following an increase to the asset purchase programme last month and some gloomy economic data since then, were those at Deutsche Bank and Citigroup, who expected another £50bn in quantitative easing to be announced.Also helping stocks higher early on today was the Markit/CIPS UK service sector purchasing managers' index for the month of May which came in at 53.3 points, versus the 52.4 expected by the consensus.As expected, the bond yields on offer rose at Spain's latest debt auction of two-, four- and 10-year notes, but demand was stronger this time around with bid-to-cover ratios increasing for each security, giving a boost to equities in mid-morning trade. The Spanish Treasury issued a total of €2.07bn, ahead of its top-end target of €2bn.The European Central Bank (ECB) yesterday left its key interest rate unchanged at 1%, saying that it will extend its liquidity loans for banks for the rest of the year. In the subsequent press conference, ECB President Mario Draghi said: "We monitor all developments closely and we stand ready to act". Meanwhile, US stocks surged last night following the release of the Federal Reserve's Beige Book which painted a more upbeat picture of the world's largest economy. However, Janet Yellen, the vice-chair of the Fed, said that if the recovery fails to be satisfactory, "I am convinced that scope remains for the Federal Open Market Committee to provide further policy accommodation." FTSE 100: Burberry, Johnson Matthey and banks provide a liftLuxury brand Burberry was also a high riser after Credit Suisse upgraded the stock from neutral to outperform and lifted its target price from 1,420p to 1,650p.Platinum refiner Johnson Matthey jumped after hailing another year of strong growth as it delivered numbers ahead of market expectations and a special divi worth a quid a share.Banks were also providing a lift this morning, with Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds and Barclays making decent gains. Deutsche Bank retained its buy recommendations for Lloyds and Barclays today but maintained a hold on RBS.Tullow Oil was higher after its Paon-1X exploration well offshore Côte d'Ivoire found good quality light oil in a Turonian fan system. Engineering giant GKN was also on the rise despite Citigroup maintaining its neutral rating and 170p target price for the stock this morning.Telecoms giant Vodafone fell slightly after announcing an agreement with Telefonica to create one national grid in the UK by pooling together parts of their network infrastructure.Also in the red were the miners following some impressive gains yesterday; sector peers Fresnillo, Randgold, Evraz, ENRC and Kazakhmys were among the worst performers.FTSE 250: Betfair on the upOnline betting exchange Betfair rose after confirming it has received an online gaming licence from the Spanish government. The move had been anticipated since the end of May but the decision sees the final stage of a process begun in the Spring of last year, when Spain's new gambling legislation was first introduced. Sector peers bwin.party and Ladbrokes, who announced they had won licences on June 1st, rose in sympathy. Gold miner African Barrick Gold (ABG) retreated after yesterday's near-15% jump. Its parent company Barrick Gold announced on Wednesday afternoon that President and CEO Aaron Regent has been replaced with the group citing disappointment over its recent share price performance. Regent has now left ABG as Chairman.FTSE 100 - RisersBurberry Group (BRBY) 1,387.00p +4.76%Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 2,286.00p +4.05%Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 27.91p +3.22%InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 1,509.00p +2.65%GKN (GKN) 182.50p +2.64%Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 218.40p +2.44%BG Group (BG.) 1,266.50p +2.05%Barclays (BARC) 191.40p +1.92%Legal & General Group (LGEN) 114.00p +1.88%Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 337.10p +1.87%FTSE 100 - FallersFresnillo (FRES) 1,432.00p -2.72%Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 5,830.00p -2.51%Evraz (EVR) 280.20p -2.44%Man Group (EMG) 79.35p -1.86%Eurasian Natural Resources Corp. (ENRC) 431.40p -1.57%Kazakhmys (KAZ) 704.50p -1.40%Weir Group (WEIR) 1,465.00p -1.35%ICAP (IAP) 336.70p -1.23%International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 142.80p -1.18%United Utilities Group (UU.) 671.50p -0.96%FTSE 250 - RisersLamprell (LAM) 107.20p +5.10%Imagination Technologies Group (IMG) 499.50p +4.87%Barratt Developments (BDEV) 124.80p +3.48%Supergroup (SGP) 294.40p +2.97%Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 44.90p +2.96%Ashtead Group (AHT) 229.50p +2.91%Persimmon (PSN) 568.50p +2.80%SIG (SHI) 86.00p +2.63%Savills (SVS) 323.40p +2.41%Regus (RGU) 91.00p +2.25%FTSE 250 - FallersCranswick (CWK) 798.00p -5.06%African Barrick Gold (ABG) 388.50p -2.92%Daejan Holdings (DJAN) 2,649.00p -2.90%Afren (AFR) 111.50p -2.62%Devro (DVO) 308.40p -2.37%Essar Energy (ESSR) 127.10p -2.31%Soco International (SIA) 284.40p -1.93%Petra Diamonds Ltd.(DI) (PDL) 133.10p -1.84%Interserve (IRV) 293.00p -1.84%Telecom Plus (TEP) 763.50p -1.80%BC