Legal & General Share News (LGEN)

There has been little change in the FTSE 100 since it abruptly took a downward turn this morningKazakh resources group ENRC is leading the mining sector lower, closely followed by fellow Kazakh operation Kazakhmys. Lower metals prices are also hitting the likes of Antofagasta, Anglo American, Lonmin, Vedanta and Xstrata.In the banking sector the part-nationalised pair Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Lloyds Banking are suffering the most after the publication of the Top 50 rankings of the world's safest banks by American magazine Global Magazine. Lloyds was ranked sixth in the league of safe banks in last year's report but has now dropped out of the top 50.Reports that it is contemplating a £600m rights issue drag down insurance giant RSA. Drug group AstraZeneca is higher after saying it is to press ahead with plans to submit its ticagrelor drug, Brilinta, for regulatory approval in the fourth quarter of 2009 after positive results from a major trial.The company hailed results from a trial which showed ticagrelor reduced cardiovascular death and heart attacks over clopidogrel in acute coronary syndromes (ACS) patients.Drugs major Shire has completed a new drug application (NDA) for velaglucerase alfa, its enzyme replacement therapy in development for the treatment of Type 1 Gaucher disease, with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The submission to the FDA has been made ahead of schedule.Asia-focused bank Standard Chartered has agreed to sell its entire 14.85% stake in BC Card to Korean private equity firm Vogo Fund and its affiliates. Vogo is buying Stnadrd's stake and also the 15.83% stake in BC Card held by Hana Bank for around $155.6m in total.Self-storage operator Safestore saw an increasing level of enquiries for new lets in the three months to end-July. Activity picked up noticeably in July, the company said. Revenue for the nine months to 31 July 2009 rose by 1.7% from the corresponding period of last year.Support services group Serco today announced it has won three UK government contracts worth between £400m and £500m to help unemployed workers find a job.Majestic Wine, the Aim-listed wine retailer, has changed a major plank of its business strategy by reducing the minimum in-store purchase to six bottles from twelve.FTSE 100 - RisersBritish American Tobacco (BATS) 1,902.00p +1.49%Autonomy Corporation (AU.) 1,318.00p +1.31%AstraZeneca (AZN) 2,877.00p +1.30%Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 2,887.00p +1.19%BAE Systems (BA.) 314.90p +0.86%Home Retail Group (HOME) 314.80p +0.83%Petrofac Ltd (PFC) 885.50p +0.80%Diageo (DGE) 960.50p +0.68%Intertek Group (ITRK) 1,215.00p +0.50%GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,209.00p +0.50%FTSE 100 - FallersEurasian Natural Resources (ENRC) 822.00p -4.97%Antofagasta (ANTO) 733.00p -4.37%RSA Insurance Group (RSA) 125.30p -4.06%Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 107.02p -3.88%Xstrata (XTA) 795.50p -3.75%Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 55.60p -3.56%Anglo American (AAL) 1,950.50p -3.49%HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 648.80p -3.47%Vedanta Resources (VED) 1,731.00p -3.40%Hammerson (HMSO) 391.20p -3.38%FTSE 250 - RisersInchcape (INCH) 28.90p +4.14%Game Group (GMG) 170.10p +3.72%HMV Group (HMV) 121.10p +3.06%Burberry Group (BRBY) 495.40p +2.46%Croda International (CRDA) 643.00p +2.39%Telecity Group (TCY) 347.20p +2.12%National Express Group (NEX) 405.30p +1.73%Halma (HLMA) 199.90p +1.68%Restaurant Group (RTN) 194.20p +1.68%Melrose (MRO) 163.40p +1.49%FTSE 250 - FallersDunelm (DNLM) 272.30p -6.49%Peter Hambro Mining (POG) 722.50p -6.35%Redrow (RDW) 232.00p -6.19%Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 49.00p -6.13%Fidelity Special Values (FSV) 517.50p -5.91%Shaftesbury (SHB) 357.60p -5.65%Ashmore Group (ASHM) 226.40p -5.27%Salamander Energy (SMDR) 195.50p -5.24%SVG Capital (SVI) 122.00p -5.13%Enterprise Inns (ETI) 157.90p -4.94%