Lloyds Share News (LLOY)

- Stocks shaken by Middle-East tensions, reports of oil rig fire- US lawmakers class 'cliff' discussions as 'constructive'- Greek haircut worries dent sentimentThe FTSE 100 sunk to its lowest level since July on Friday as rising tensions in the Middle East, Eurozone debt concerns and the worries about the impending 'fiscal cliff' in the US combined to dampen risk appetite.The Footsie finished just above 5,600, its lowest closing price since July 26th when it finished at 5,573.According to Sky News, two rockets have been fired at an uninhabited area near Jerusalem, with Israel Defence Forces confirming that the attack came from Gaza. No injuries have been reported. Also causing some concern this afternoon was the news of a fire on an oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico. While rumours suggest that it is not a deep-sea drilling operation and is located in shallow water, the USA Today reported that the fire has resulted in the deaths of two workers and several injuries.The news comes at an unfortunate time for sentiment in the oil industry after BP reached a $4.5bn settlement with US authorities about their part in the Macondo oil spill in 2010, which cost 11 lives and resulted in the world's largest-ever offshore oil spill for its environmental implications. Stateside today, US President Barack Obama met with Democratic and Republican congressional leaders to discuss a deal that would negotiate a reduction to the deficit in a bid to avoid the so-called US 'fiscal cliff'. Stocks began to pick up on Wall Street this afternoon after lawmakers emerged from the White House, labelled the discussions as "constructive".Acting as a backdrop for markets were ongoing fears about the Greek debt crisis, as investors speculate that the country could need another 'haircut' on its debt. Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann said today the country's debt level is not sustainable. Market analyst Craig Erlam from Alpari said: "This notion of a 'haircut' is nothing new and for many in the markets, it has been clear all along that Greece were not necessarily going to be capable of paying all their debts."Italy's Finance Minister has told Bloomberg he is optimistic that Europe can reach an agreement on Greece next week. The International Monetary Fund's Managing Director, Christine Lagarde, on the other hand, has been cited in a slightly more sceptical vein. FTSE 100: Melrose plummets; IMI climbs after 'in-line' tradingIndustrial turnaround specialist Melrose tanked today after saying some of its businesses have seen a slow-down in business in recent weeks. The overall weekly rate of order intake in the second half of the year has been 8% lower than the first half, but Melrose said it is too early to tell how this will affect 2013, and in any case the order intake rate is varying on a business by business basis. Engineering giant IMI gained after saying that second-half trading has been in line with expectations so far in spite of some expected weakness in the Fluid Power division. Serco rose strongly after it delivered the anticipated pick-up in performance in the second half and said it is on track to meet full-year expectations. Pennon Group saw its shares take a hit after several brokers, including Nomura, UBS and Morgan Cazenove, lowered their target prices for the stock. The company warned yesterday that full-year profits at its recycling unit Viridor would be "somewhat below the bottom of the current range of market expectations". Cruise operator Carnival was flat despite announcing a special payout of $0.50 per share to be paid next month, in addition to its previously announced quarterly dividend. Banking peers RBS and Lloyds were registering losses. A Public Accounts Committee report said today that while the government would look to make a profit for taxpayers on the sale of its stake in the two banks, this may not happen "for many years". It also said that there is a risk that the £66bn invested in RBS and Lloyds "may never be recovered". FTSE 250: Bodycote gains after solid revenue growthBodycote, the world's largest thermal processing services provider, has reported revenue growth of 2.9% in the four months to the end of October compared to the same period the previous year. At constant currency rates, revenue rose to 7.6%. Defence contractor Ultra Electronics fell after saying that uncertainty and cutbacks in the defence sector will hit it profits for the year. In addition, the Finance Director has decided to move on. Property consultancy Savills adds to yesterday's gains which it racked up after announcing that its overall underlying result for the full year will be slightly ahead of its original expectations. In the UK, investment activity has continued to be strong in the Central London market, but for the most part has remained subdued elsewhere. FTSE 100 - RisersIMI (IMI) 958.00p +1.70%Serco Group (SRP) 550.00p +1.01%Compass Group (CPG) 692.00p +0.65%Polymetal International (POLY) 1,111.00p +0.63%Croda International (CRDA) 2,292.00p +0.61%Associated British Foods (ABF) 1,394.00p +0.58%Severn Trent (SVT) 1,524.00p +0.33%Babcock International Group (BAB) 960.00p +0.31%Intertek Group (ITRK) 2,836.00p +0.28%Aggreko (AGK) 2,095.00p -0.05%FTSE 100 - FallersMelrose (MRO) 208.90p -11.48%Eurasian Natural Resources Corp. (ENRC) 259.60p -5.39%Pennon Group (PNN) 599.50p -4.61%Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 43.98p -3.77%Fresnillo (FRES) 1,877.00p -3.64%Evraz (EVR) 218.60p -3.06%BT Group (BT.A) 219.00p -2.75%Wood Group (John) (WG.) 770.00p -2.59%Aviva (AV.) 320.00p -2.59%Amec (AMEC) 994.50p -2.50%FTSE 250 - RisersBodycote (BOY) 376.40p +3.78%Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 1,318.00p +2.97%Computacenter (CCC) 373.90p +2.52%Barr (A.G.) (BAG) 467.00p +2.52%Centamin (DI) (CEY) 69.30p +2.29%Bank of Georgia Holdings (BGEO) 1,092.00p +2.06%Ashtead Group (AHT) 378.30p +1.37%Telecom Plus (TEP) 855.00p +1.24%Genesis Emerging Markets Fund Ltd. (GSS) 520.00p +0.97%Dairy Crest Group (DCG) 352.10p +0.92%FTSE 250 - FallersRuspetro (RPO) 88.00p -7.56%Supergroup (SGP) 638.50p -7.46%Essar Energy (ESSR) 119.00p -6.67%Shanks Group (SKS) 79.80p -5.56%COLT Group SA (COLT) 100.00p -4.76%Brewin Dolphin Holdings (BRW) 169.80p -4.61%Lonmin (LMI) 471.30p -3.89%KCOM Group (KCOM) 69.00p -3.83%Bumi (BUMI) 264.20p -3.72%Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC) 34.91p -3.64%BC