Broker tips for 2011

Analysts are predicting a bullish year for the UK market on hopes a global economic recovery will kick in. Here are a few of the companies brokers think will lead the advance.Standard Life predicts the FTSE 100, which has risen around 25% since July, could rise by a further 15% to 6,900 by the end of 2011, with the banking sector seeing a rally in the year. The firm's head of UK equities David Cumming names Barclays as his top pick in the banking sector saying that economy-sensitive and cyclical stocks are preferred to defensives. Shares in the UK bank are currently 12% than this time time last year.Another favourite of Standard Life's is oil giant BP which is currently trading over 20% below the level prior the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. "BP still looks cheap as a recovery stock," Cumming said. "The market has built in quite a lot of litigation costs, which I think is overdone."Mining is also expected to remain a strong sector on the back of rising commodity prices. Cumming says Indian miner Vedanta, which is engaged in copper, zinc, aluminium and iron ore, is currently undervalued due to regulatory problems, and will be a strong performer in the coming 12 months.Japanese broker Nomura says Rio Tinto is worth a 'buy' driven primarily by the iron ore price, with the respective division accounting for around two-thirds of the group's earnings. Analyst Paul Cliff forecasts Chinese steel production to continue to grow, "keeping demand ahead of supply growth and supporting high prices." However, there are fears that rising commodity prices could halt the UK recovery, with food, metals and crude oil prices set to surge during the year. In a speech in Leicester on Thursday, David Cameron expressed his concern about the rising prices coupled with the VAT rise on petrol.Inflation is likely to remain a constant worry throughout the year, with climbing prices hurting manufacturer's profit margins, forcing the Bank of England to raise interest rates which many foresee to impact the economic recovery.Rising oil prices, however, will likely benefit companies such as Rockhopper Exploration, which is tipped by Panmure Gordon as a preferred pick for 2011. The company is about to start an appraisal programme which should confirm commercial quantities of reserves, and the broker confirms a 'buy'.The broker forecasts no letting up of its outstanding 2010 performance, outperforming the FTSE All-Share by 440%, and believes there is still significant upside remaining.However, Panmure's number one stock for the year is insurer Aviva, expected to perform well on the back of rising equity markets - "we think that within the large-cap sector, Aviva will benefit the most," says analyst Barrie Cornes.While Aviva's flat share price in 2010 was disappointing, Cornes says that a sizeable 2011 dividend yield of 6.9%, along with the new revised strategy that was announced in November, should fare the group well to outperform the sector. On the retail side of things, home furnishings group Dunelm is Panmure's sector pick for next 12 months as the company is "well suited to austerity economics." With products priced at the mid-low end of the market and less linked to the housing market than other home retailers, the broker expects continued growth over the period.The stock has moved from ninth to third in the UK homewares market over the last six years, and plans to double its number of UK superstores, funded by a net cash balance sheet. Additionally, the broker sees the recent mark-down in share price - from weather-related fears in the retail sector - as a myopic approach, as Dunelm is likely to outperform the sector the general retail index during 2011 as a whole.