London afternoon: Stocks extend gains

A positive start by Wall Street has given renewed impetus to Footsie's rise this afternoon. As in Europe, stocks are rising in the US on the hope that a package to take the steam out of the Irish debt crisis is imminent. Patrick Honohan, the head of Ireland's central bank, has confirmed a loan is likely with brokers suggesting it could be as much as €85bn, including €20bn to provide support for the country's beleaguered banks, Bank of Ireland, Allied Irish and Anglo Irish.In company news, shareholders are raising a glass to brewing giant SABMiller after a strong performance in all regions but Europe helped it post a rise in profits in the half year to September 30. Pre-tax profits at the brewer of famous brands such as Miller and Peroni climbed to $1.69bn (£1.06bn) from $1.5bn over the same period the previous year as revenues rose to $9.43bn from $8.84bn. Engineering and project management company AMEC is also going well after it won a double-headed contract from ConocoPhillips for oilfield services in the North Sea.Business process outsourcing colossus Capita is taking a beating after it warned revenue growth in the second half of 2010 has been subdued due to the pressures on public spending.Anglo-Dutch publishing giant Reed Elsevier is trading much the same as it did in the first half, with subscription revenues constrained, and advertising, promotion and other cyclical markets continuing to stabilise.Quality and safety services provider Intertek has run into profit taking after a decent update with market conditions strengthening across many parts of its business in the second half. In the first ten months of 2010 all divisions grew revenues, with the group as a whole achieving year on year organic revenue growth of 6.5%. In the FTSE 250, QinetiQ is on the attack after a sharp rise in half-yearly revenues at the defence technology group.Engineering conglomerate Melrose is another stock sharply higher. Current trading overall remains strong and is marginally ahead of management expectations, the company said.Its near namesake, Melrose Rersources, is not faring nearly so well. The shares tumble after the oil and gas company said production in the third quarter was about 6% lower than it was in the corresponding period of last year.London Stock Exchange grew profits by 26% in the first half, helped by cost cutting and a sharp increase in the number of new issues. Profit before tax for the six months ended 30 September jumped to £100.2m from £79.4m a year earlier. Halfords pedals forward after the bike and car part retailer's results. The company reported a healthy rise in sales and profits in the 26 weeks to 1 October, but trading remains tough, with like-for-like sales under pressure.Car hire firm Avis said current trading has continued to improve and expectations for the remainder of the year are unchanged. Overall rental income for the 4 months to end of October was up 4.5% from the previous year, having been 1.1% ahead for the six months to 30th June, the group said. Ground preparation engineer Keller is in a hole after cautioning full year results will be around the bottom end of market expectations as intense competition continues to bite. "Conditions in the group's mature markets continue to be difficult and the overall picture remains challenging," Keller said in a company statement.