London close: Flat finish despite banks' advance

The top share index was seeking direction all day Monday even as banks advanced following the publication of changes proposed for the sector by the Independent Commission on Banking (ICB).While Lloyds Banking had a grumble about the ICB's recommendation that it should have to sell more than 600 branches, the market's reaction is that the report looks favourable for the sector.The ICB stopped short of recommending that banks that have investment banking arms should demerge those operations. Instead, it has recommended that banks' retail operations should be protected by a "firewall" from the investment banking division.Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) went well but Lloyds was more subdued. It said the ICB's suggestion that it should divest more branches than the 600 it was contemplating selling "would not be in the interest of our customers and appears to be based on limited evidence and may significantly delay meeting the commitments agreed between the UK Government and EU."Broker Daniel Stewart said the report was "broadly as expected but worse for Lloyds". "Banks of systemic importance will required to hold Core Tier 1 equity of at least 10%. We note that most UK banks are already at around that level," the broker said. "However, there is a negative twist in the tail for Lloyds, which holds 30% of the current account market and a similar share of the mortgage market, which faces further branch disposals on top of the 600 branches it has been ordered to sell by the EU under the state aid ruling," the broker continues."Overall, for the banks most affected, the proposals look neutral for Barclays and RBS and slightly negative for Lloyds. NBNK, the bank set up by Lord Levene to acquire available branch networks, is a potential beneficiary," the broker concludes.Mining giant BHP Billiton is rivalling Barclays and RBS for top spot in the FTSE 100 after it poured cold water on press reports that it is preparing to buy oil leviathan Royal Dutch Shell's stake in Australian oil company Woodside Petroleum. The stock has also seen its rating raised from "neutral" to "outperform" by Credit Suisse.Automotive and aerospace engineer GKN motored ahead after it said that its car operations have been affected by the recent earthquake in Japan, while adding that market conditions have otherwise been as expected in the first quarter. Sales were up by 14% from the same period a year ago to £1.49bn, while pre-tax profits rose by more than 50% to £107m.In the FTSE 250, CPP, the identity theft and credit card insurer that is under investigation by the Financial Services Authority, fell after it said that Barclaycard is conducting a review of CPP's 'call to confirm' offering to Barclaycard customers, during which time the service will be suspended.Soaring international revenues helped recruitment group Michael Page post a sharp rise in profits in the first quarter, though growth was more subdued in the UK amid continuing difficult economic conditions. Total gross profit was up by 30% from the same period the previous year at £127.3m.Catering giant Compass has added to its Indian operations with the acquisition of two catering outfits in the fast growing Asian economy. It has bought Delhi-based Vipul Facility Management (VPM), which has gross assets of 342.2m Indian rupees (£5.2m) and Hyderabad-based Ultimate Hospitality Services (UHS) for 42.1 rupees.Fashion house Burberry fell after reports of a third Japanese earthquake. The aftershock was of a 7.1 magnitude and the Japanese authorities have warned of a three foot high tsunami. Japan is a major market for Burberry. Patent translation specialist RWS Holdings said it is encouraged by strong trading in the first six months of the financial year and expects revenues to increase by at least 10% to £32.4m.CPP, the identity theft and credit card insurer that is under investigation by the Financial Services Authority (FSA), said that Barclaycard has decided to stop using CPP's 'call to confirm' services while it completes a review of the service.FTSE 100 - RisersBarclays (BARC) 305.35p +2.76%Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 44.43p +2.30%Resolution Ltd. (RSL) 311.70p +2.13%Cairn Energy (CNE) 454.20p +2.04%BHP Billiton (BLT) 2,631.50p +1.78%Centrica (CNA) 324.80p +1.40%John Wood Group (WG.) 682.50p +1.19%Shire Plc (SHP) 1,839.00p +1.10%GKN (GKN) 204.60p +1.09%Xstrata (XTA) 1,527.50p +0.93%FTSE 100 - Fallers3i Group (III) 267.30p -2.84%Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,159.00p -2.03%WPP (WPP) 746.50p -1.91%IMI (IMI) 1,027.00p -1.63%InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 1,262.00p -1.48%Vedanta Resources (VED) 2,431.00p -1.46%TUI Travel (TT.) 230.10p -1.41%Inmarsat (ISAT) 613.00p -1.05%Serco Group (SRP) 543.00p -1.00%Lonmin (LMI) 1,743.00p -0.97%FTSE 250 - RisersCOLT Group SA (COLT) 154.00p +3.84%AG Barr (BAG) 1,320.00p +2.88%Kenmare Resources (KMR) 50.30p +2.65%Northgate (NTG) 346.70p +2.57%Cable & Wireless Worldwide (CW.) 51.20p +2.40%Lamprell (LAM) 368.90p +2.39%Stobart Group Ltd. (STOB) 152.00p +2.36%Howden Joinery Group (HWDN) 109.70p +2.24%Heritage Oil (HOIL) 282.80p +1.98%Filtrona PLC (FLTR) 310.80p +1.90%FTSE 250 - FallersCPP Group (CPP) 129.00p -14.00%Barratt Developments (BDEV) 103.40p -4.35%Persimmon (PSN) 443.40p -4.13%Bellway (BWY) 676.00p -4.05%Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 36.49p -4.00%Ashtead Group (AHT) 196.90p -3.53%Redrow (RDW) 117.90p -3.36%SDL (SDL) 629.50p -3.15%Bovis Homes Group (BVS) 410.30p -3.14%Bwin.party Digital Entertainment (BPTY) 131.70p -2.88%