LONDON (Alliance News) - The following stocks are the leading risers and fallers within the main London indices midday Monday.
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FTSE 100 - WINNERS
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Barclays, up 2.2%. The bank's new chairman, John McFarlane, has told executives working on the group's effort to separate its retail bank from its investment bank to either acquire an entity with a banking licence or apply for a new one, according to a Financial Times report on Sunday.
International Consolidated Airlines Group, up 2.1%. UBS has upgraded the airline to Buy from Neutral.
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FTSE 100 - LOSERS
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Fresnillo, down 0.8% and Randgold Resources, down 0.8%. The gold miners are down after a fall in the price of gold after three consecutive sessions higher. The metal currently trades at USD1,155.85 an ounce.
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FTSE 250 - WINNERS
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Alent, up 45%. US-based Platform Specialty Products Corp said it has agreed a GBP1.35 billion takeover of the FTSE 250-listed chemicals company. Platform Specialty, a chemicals industry consolidation vehicle, said it will pay 503 pence in cash for Alent shares, a premium of around 49% to Alent's closing price of 337.7 pence on Friday. Platform will make the acquisition via its MacDermid Performance Acquisitions Ltd subsidiary. Alent now trades at 489.00 pence.
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FTSE 250 - LOSERS
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International Personal Finance, down 14%. The lender warned there could be financial consequences as a result of potential legal changes in Poland that could result in a cap that covers a broader definition of non-interest costs than previously suggested. The company said it is reviewing draft legislation as it works out whether the structure of its products will be affected by a cap that could affect all non-interest costs in connection with a consumer loan agreement, a change from previous proposals that involved a cap on all mandatory, non-interest costs.
Nostrum Oil & Gas, down 0.7%. The oil and gas exploration and production company said it has is in talks with Tethys Petroleum Ltd about making a CAD73.5 million takeover offer for the Guernsey-registered company. It said it has made a "possible offer" with a value of CAD0.2185 per Tethys share, which could be paid in cash or in Nostrum shares, or a combination of the two.
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AIM ALL-SHARE - WINNERS
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Anglo Asian Mining, up 26%. The company said its gold production in the first half hit a record level following a strong second quarter. It said its gold production in the first half was 35,968 ounces, with gold production in the second quarter rising to 18,745 ounces from 17,193 ounces in the first quarter and from 15,736 a year earlier. The company maintained its full-year gold production target at 70,000-75,000 ounces.
Sprue Aegis, up 9.1%. The home safety products company said it expects its sales in the first half to more than double year-on-year following a stronger-than-anticipated performance in the French market, which also helped push its operating profit up three times over.
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AIM ALL-SHARE - LOSERS
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Vitesse Media, off 8.7%. The business-to-business media company said it has seen some revenue-generating events delayed in the first four months of its current financial year, sending its shares lower in early trade, even as it said it narrowed its pretax loss and increased its revenue in its 2015 financial year.
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By Neil Thakrar; neilthakrar@alliancenews.com; @NeilThakrar1
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