Marks & Spencer Share News (MKS)

Shares have built on their early gains with the retail sector still in the driving seat.Economic news is also influencing traders. Industrial production in the United Kingdom fell by 1.2% in February, according to data published by the Office of National Statistics (ONS). The figures may make Bank of England rate-setters less likely to raise interest rates as they hold their monthly meeting today and tomorrow.In company news, high street stalwart M&S saw a sharp drop in like-for-like sales of clothes and other non-food items in the 13 weeks to 2 April, though the fall wasn't as severe as expected and overall sales growth was maintained. General merchandise sales were down by 3.4% from the same period last year, which was not as bad as some analysts' estimates of a more than 5% decline. Food sales were up by 3.4% on a like-for-like basis, resulting in overall like-for-like sales growth of 0.1%.The shares are higher, as are those in rival retailers such as fashion chain Next, department store Debenhams and supermarket Tesco.Figures from Italian restaurant chain Prezzo also suggested the consumer outlook is not that bad. Adjusted pre-tax profits in the 53 weeks to 2 January were up by 12% from the previous year to £14.4m on revenues that climbed by 15% to £104.8m. Prezzo also reported a strong start to 2011 and said it is confident for the year ahead.Financial software provider Misys is wanted after it reported a 7% rise in year on year revenue in the third quarter ended 28 February 2011, following strong demand for its products, and said it was poised to meet medium-term targets. Revenue during the third quarter rose to £85m while year to date the figure rose 2%. Order intake rose 34% to £49m and 13% year to date. Drugs firm Shire has filed a lawsuit against US rival Watson Pharmaceuticals, claiming an infringement of Shire's ADDERALL XR patents, and a breach of contract.Norwegian Airlines has ordered its first ever Rolls-Royce engines. Norwegian has selected Rolls-Royce's Trent 100 engines to power nine Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. The airline has also signed a $450m Rolls-Royce TotalCare long-term engine services contract.FTSE 100 - RisersMarks & Spencer Group (MKS) 360.00p +5.82%Next (NXT) 2,110.00p +3.89%Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 61.88p +3.79%TUI Travel (TT.) 236.10p +3.33%Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 43.03p +3.26%International Power (IPR) 321.80p +3.17%Barclays (BARC) 294.25p +2.62%HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 663.20p +2.44%Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 5,345.00p +2.30%Investec (INVP) 497.10p +1.99%FTSE 100 - FallersPearson (PSON) 1,118.00p -2.44%Centrica (CNA) 323.10p -2.00%Severn Trent (SVT) 1,442.00p -0.62%Scottish & Southern Energy (SSE) 1,288.00p -0.54%British Land Co (BLND) 557.50p -0.54%Invensys (ISYS) 342.20p -0.52%Cairn Energy (CNE) 467.40p -0.49%BP (BP.) 472.65p -0.46%Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,205.00p -0.41%SABMiller (SAB) 2,261.50p -0.40%FTSE 250 - RisersCentamin Egypt Ltd. (CEY) 145.40p +4.83%Exillon Energy (EXI) 459.00p +4.56%Petropavlovsk (POG) 980.00p +4.14%Brown (N.) Group (BWNG) 271.10p +3.99%Thomas Cook Group (TCG) 174.10p +3.57%Renishaw (RSW) 1,565.00p +3.44%Halfords Group (HFD) 368.40p +3.43%Debenhams (DEB) 62.90p +3.37%Misys (MSY) 336.50p +3.22%easyJet (EZJ) 336.20p +3.19%FTSE 250 - FallersTaylor Wimpey (TW.) 39.08p -2.88%Barratt Developments (BDEV) 109.40p -2.58%Ultra Electronics Holdings (ULE) 1,701.00p -2.07%Bodycote (BOY) 333.30p -1.94%Phoenix Group Holdings (DI) (PHNX) 663.00p -1.78%Moneysupermarket.com Group (MONY) 89.25p -1.71%Bwin.party Digital Entertainment (BPTY) 194.60p -1.67%Logica (LOG) 128.90p -1.53%Afren (AFR) 168.70p -1.46%Cable & Wireless Worldwide (CW.) 50.80p -1.45%