Metminco Share News (MNC)

LONDON (Alliance News) - The following stocks are the leading risers and fallers within the main London indices on Tuesday.
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FTSE 100 - WINNERS
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Wm Morrison Supermarkets, up 2.3%. The supermarket has been upgraded to Hold from Reduce by HSBC, with an unchanged 150.00 pence price target. Rival supermarkets rose as well, with Tesco up 3.3% and J Sainsbury up 3.8%.
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FTSE 100 - LOSERS
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Anglo American, down 5.3%. The Anglo-South African miner outlined a "radical" portfolio restructuring and plans to cut costs further by suspending its dividend and cutting expenditure as the miner tries to adjust the business to be more competitive in an environment with falling commodity prices. Anglo American intends to reduce its assets by 60%. It wants to sell more assets to build on the USD2.00 billion generated from asset disposals so far, and plans to double that amount by selling other assets related to phosphates and niobium, it said. Anglo American also will suspend its dividend for the second half of 2015 and for 2016. Once the dividend resumes, the miner plans to change its policy so it is more in line with earnings. Rival miners joined Anglo at the foot of the FTSE 100 as the iron ore price slumped further. Glencore was down 5.4%, Rio Tinto down 4.6%, BHP Billiton down 4.5% and Antofagasta down 4.0%.
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FTSE 250 - WINNERS
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Booker Group, up 1.4% at 183.70p. Barclays raised its price target on the wholesaler to 210 pence from 187p.
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FTSE 250 - LOSERS
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Serco Group, down 4.2% at 104.7p. The outsourcer's shares fell after JPMorgan cut its target price on the stock to 130 pence from 155p, keeping a Neutral rating, and S&P Capital IQ cut its target price to 115p from 135p, maintaining a Hold. Serco shares fell 4.3% on Monday, having been down as much as 13% at one point in the day, after the company painted a gloomy picture on its 2016 outlook, with revenue and trading profit set to fall.
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MAIN MARKET AND AIM - WINNERS
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Cenkos Securities, up 10%. The stockbroker said it is not under investigation by the UK's Serious Fraud Office. Cenkos said it has "not been asked to provide, and nor has it provided, any information" to the SFO in relation to any investigation. "The company is currently working with its advisers to address and rectify the position in relation to the inaccurate reporting referred to above," Cenkos said in a statement, referring to an article in The Sunday Times. Cenkos used to be the nominated adviser to Quindell, now Watchstone Group, which is under investigation by the SFO over its past business and accounting practices.
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MAIN MARKET AND AIM - LOSERS
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Kolar Gold, down 25%. The company launched a strategic review to explore all of the options available to try to keep the company alive beyond the end of calendar 2016 and said Chief Executive Nick Spencer has left the company with immediate effect. The review could lead to Kolar selling its assets or the entire company, including the prospect of delisting from AIM, or potentially looking at opportunities outside of India where it is currently focused. However, the board said it will consider winding up the company and returning cash to investors if they are "unable to see a long term future" for the company. In tandem with the launch of the review, Spencer has resigned, as has Non-Executive Stephen Coe. Kolar did not state why Spencer was leaving, but said Coe was departing for "personal reasons".

Aureus Mining, down 17%. The miner said it has received a request for arbitration from a company that previously held a contract to conduct work on the New Liberty gold mine, but said the request is without merit. The request has been filed by International Construction & Engineering, which had won a contract from Aureus to carry out civil and earthworks at Aureus' New Liberty gold mine in Liberia. The contract awarded by Aureus to International Construction & Engineering was terminated in August 2014, when only 60% to 70% of the work to be carried out by ICE was completed. Aureus terminated that contract "having taken the appropriate legal advice," it said.

Metminco, down 15%. The miner warned the ongoing court proceedings concerning its mining access rights at the Mollacas mine in Chile may take "some months" to conclude, and said it is progressing its plans to form an alliance to develop the Los Calatos mine in Peru. Metminco won a favourable ruling from the Supreme Court of Chile in August, which overturned a ruling made by the regional Court of Appeal, granting mining access rights to the company, allowing Metminco to carry out operations at the Mollacas mine. On Tuesday, the miner said it has been advised by its Chilean lawyers that it may take "some months" for that decision to be formally handed down by the Supreme Court and said there was "no certainty on timing".
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By Sam Unsted; samunsted@alliancenews.com; @SamUAtAlliance

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