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London close: Greek developments, central bank uncertainty keep UK stocks flat

Thu, 19th Feb 2015 16:33

It was another subdued finish for London's stocks on Thursday as the market continued to fluctuate at a 15-year high on the back of mixed newsflow about Greece and uncertainty regarding global monetary policy.The FTSE 100 finished the session down just 0.1% at 6,888.90. The index has stayed broadly flat since closing at 6,898.13 on Tuesday, its highest finish since reaching an all-time closing high of 6,930.20 in December 1999.GreeceGreece on Thursday submitted a request for a six-month loan extension, but on different terms from the existing bailout. The Greek proposal reportedly asked for flexibility on the "current arrangement" and more help for the country's banks.However, Germany rejected the request, saying that Greece did not present a "substantive proposal for a solution"."Greece is running out of time and money," said Berenberg analyst Holger Schmieding. "Having already come part of the way, Greece may well move further and accept the current programme as the basis for all further discussions at the Eurogroup meeting Friday," he said.The European Central Bank on Wednesday granted Greece's banks €3.3bn in funds under its emergency liquidity assistance programme, though this was less than Athens had requested.Central banks in focusMinutes from the January Federal Open Market Committee meeting released on Wednesday showed that "many" members said a premature rate increase could be detrimental for the recovery, while "several" believed a later move could lead to high inflation.The European Central Bank (ECB) also released minutes of its latest meeting, during which it decided to introduce a €1trn quantitative easing package. This was the first time the ECB has revealed details of its meeting, which revealed that some members had voted against the stimulus package, which is due to start next month.Minutes from the Bank of England's policy meeting on Wednesday showed that while the vote to keep rates unchanged was unanimous, policymakers had different opinions on the timing of a rate hike given the recent deterioration in inflation.CentricaShares in Centrica dropped 8.5% after the British Gas owner slashed its dividend and future payout policy, and warned that earnings for next year will be lower than expected too.Oil and gas stocks such as Tullow, BG Group, Shell and BP were also under the weather as Brent crude prices fell 3.5%.BAE Systems erased earlier losses after predicting marginal growth in underlying earnings in 2015, as it eased worries about defence spending in the UK and painted a positive outlook for the US market.High street sportswear retailer Sports Direct impressed after saying it is confident of increasing profits this year despite a significant slowdown in sales growth in its third quarter.SABMiller edged higher despite the resignation of its chief financial officer Jamie Wilson for personal reasons. He will exit the board immediately and will officially leave the group on 31 March 2015.Petra Diamonds jumped after raising its production guidance from 3.2m to 3.3m carats for the 12 months to 30 June.Drinks packaging group Rexam rose after agreeing a £5.4bn takeover by US rival Ball Corporation, a much larger higher valuation than had been expected by the market. Market MoverstechMARK 3,133.18 +0.05%FTSE 100 6,888.90 -0.13%FTSE 250 17,049.79 +0.28%FTSE 100 - RisersRolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 962.00p +2.94%easyJet (EZJ) 1,785.00p +2.12%Dixons Carphone (DC.) 441.60p +1.99%Associated British Foods (ABF) 3,057.00p +1.97%National Grid (NG.) 891.10p +1.96%International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 564.00p +1.90%Barratt Developments (BDEV) 496.60p +1.74%Sky (SKY) 956.00p +1.70%Persimmon (PSN) 1,709.00p +1.67%WPP (WPP) 1,506.00p +1.62%FTSE 100 - FallersCentrica (CNA) 257.10p -8.54%Babcock International Group (BAB) 996.00p -5.68%Anglo American (AAL) 1,223.00p -2.86%Tullow Oil (TLW) 398.20p -2.66%BG Group (BG.) 951.50p -2.58%Royal Dutch Shell 'A' (RDSA) 2,109.00p -2.09%Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 2,198.00p -2.07%Glencore (GLEN) 283.55p -2.04%GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,526.50p -1.86%Weir Group (WEIR) 1,862.00p -1.74%FTSE 250 - RisersPetra Diamonds Ltd.(DI) (PDL) 188.90p +7.88%Rexam (REX) 569.50p +6.05%Home Retail Group (HOME) 208.00p +3.79%Diploma (DPLM) 785.00p +3.63%Dignity (DTY) 1,960.00p +3.54%Euromoney Institutional Investor (ERM) 1,042.00p +3.17%Just Retirement Group (JRG) 144.10p +3.15%Galliford Try (GFRD) 1,464.00p +3.10%Vesuvius (VSVS) 478.00p +3.08%Entertainment One Limited (ETO) 296.20p +3.03%FTSE 250 - FallersPremier Oil (PMO) 175.00p -4.94%Hunting (HTG) 488.30p -4.63%Bank of Georgia Holdings (BGEO) 2,140.00p -4.51%Afren (AFR) 10.61p -4.41%Soco International (SIA) 289.20p -4.21%Catlin Group Ltd. (CGL) 677.00p -4.04%Drax Group (DRX) 403.10p -3.43%Cairn Energy (CNE) 197.70p -2.90%Ophir Energy (OPHR) 141.90p -2.87%Countrywide (CWD) 522.50p -2.79%
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19 Feb 2015 21:37

Moody's may downgrade Ball Corp over Rexam deal

By Mariana Santibanez NEW YORK, Feb 19 (IFR) - Moody's said on Thursday it may downgrade US can maker Ball Corp amid the company's planned £4.43bn (US$6.85bn) acquisition of British rival Rexam Plc. Moody's placed Ball's junk Ba1 rating on review for downgrade, citing the company's "

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19 Feb 2015 16:52

MARKET COMMENT: London Ends Mixed As Germany Dismisses Greek Terms

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19 Feb 2015 16:45

UPDATE 3-Ball Corp to buy British drinks can maker Rexam for $6.9 bln

* Cash-and-stock deal valued at 628 pence per share * Anti-trust concerns hold back share price * Ball to remain U.S. domiciled for tax (Adds Ball and analyst comments, context, updates shares) By Esha Vaish and Roshni Menon Feb 19 (Reuters) - U.S. drinks can maker Ball

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19 Feb 2015 16:00

FTSE 250 movers: Petra Diamonds boosted by higher production guidance, Man Group stonger on upgrade

Petra Diamonds topped the risers after raising its production guidance from 3.2m to 3.3m carats for the 12 months to 30 June. "Our expansion programmes are on track at all operations, and production is expected to grow to about 3.3m carats in 2015 and to about 5m carats by financial year 2019," said

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19 Feb 2015 14:08

BUZZ-U.S. STOCKS ON THE MOVE-Wal-Mart, Priceline, Ocera Therapeutics, Netlist

(For faster updates on individual market-movers, Eikon users please use search string "STXBZ US"; for the Day Ahead newsletter, http://link.reuters.com/mex49s; for the Morning News Call newsletter, http://link.reuters.com/nex49s) U.S. stock index futures pointed to a flat open on Wall Stree

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19 Feb 2015 12:42

UK MIDDAY BRIEFING: Greek Deal Optimism Gives Way To Uncertainty

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19 Feb 2015 11:39

London midday: Stocks recover as Greek hopes outweigh Fed uncertainty

UK stocks had erased earlier losses by Thursday lunchtime as hopes about Greece outweighed uncertainty arising from the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve policy meeting. The FTSE 100 was up just 0.02% at 6,899.24 by midday, having bounced off an intraday low of 6,858.67 reached early on. The in

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19 Feb 2015 11:26

UK WINNERS & LOSERS: Centrica Shares Tumble On Dividend Cut, Warning

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19 Feb 2015 11:18

TOP NEWS: Eurogroup Set To Convene Friday As Greece Seeks Extension

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19 Feb 2015 09:10

UPDATE: Rexam Agrees GBP4.3 Billion Takeover Offer From US's Ball Corp

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19 Feb 2015 08:43

London open: Centrica and BAE lead markets lower after FOMC minutes

Uncertainty surrounding the future of monetary policy in the States was weighing on UK stocks on Thursday morning, after the Federal Reserve showed it was wary of raising rates too soon. The FTSE 100 was down 0.3% at 6,879 early on, with energy provider Centrica and defence contractor BAE Systems le

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19 Feb 2015 08:42

UK's Rexam Confirms GBP4.3 Billion Takeover Offer From US's Ball Corp

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19 Feb 2015 08:34

UK MORNING BRIEFING: Centrica Shares Fall 7.7% On Loss, Dividend Cut

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19 Feb 2015 08:25

BUZZ-Rexam: jumps on $6.85 bln Ball Corp offer

** British drinks can maker Rexam jumps 6.4 pct, after saying U.S. rival Ball Corp offered to buy the company in a cash-and-stock deal valued at about 4.43 bln pounds ($6.85 bln) ** Stock up 23 pct YTD, easily one of the most actively traded stock on FTSE 250 ** Rexam said its shareho

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