London close: FTSE 100 in late dive

Shares finished firmly in the red after a sluggish day's trading that finished with a late dive in line with weakness in the US.Footsie was weighed down by a sharp fall in the price of International Power as the power generating company's shares trade today without the right to receive the recent 92p special dividend. Cillit Bang and Dettol maker Reckitt Benckiser was also a drag on the index after results disappointed. Reckitt enjoyed strong profit growth in 2010 as developing markets offset a decline in Europe, but earnings fell short of expectations and the shares fell. The company posted a profit before tax for the 12 months of £2.14bn, up 13% from £1.89bn in 2009. Revenue was up 9% at actual exchange rates, or 7% at constant rates, to £8.45bn. Both were a touch below consensus estimates.Moving on to the FTSE 250 companies, London Stock Exchange (LSE) shares were wanted after the LSE said it is to merge with Canadian peer TMX to create the world's largest stock exchange by number of companies listed. Under the terms of the merger TMX shareholders will receive 2.9963 LSE shares for each TMX share. LSE shareholders will control 55% of the shares of the combined entity.Bluetooth chip specialist CSR was another high flyer after it confirmed its intention to pay a maiden dividend. Fourth quarter revenue came in at the upper end of expectations and results for the year were "robust". In the final three months of 2010, revenue was $184.8m, down 7% on the year before, though it was up 33% over the 52 weeks to $800.6m. Newspaper publisher and exhibitions organiser Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT) said underlying revenue in the final three months of 2010 was up 5%. "Trading in the first quarter has been in line with our expectations, despite our consumer businesses being hampered by the poor weather in December," said chief executive Martin Morgan.The Caribbean market remains subdued for telecoms group Cable & Wireless Communications but growth elsewhere should ensure results for the full year are broadly in line with market expectations. In the group's third quarter (Oct - Dec) the financial performance of Panama rebounded strongly, while Macau and Monaco & Islands continued to trade well. Ultra-trendy youth fashion chain Supergroup's rapid growth sped up even more over Christmas with sales through its shops jumping by more than 90%. Overall, sales in the three months to January rose by 86.9% to £81.7m, from £43.7m, bringing the group total for the nine months of the year so far to £172m, up 75%. Data centre operator Telecity's underlying profits jumped by 45% last year as the public's insatiable appetite for more mobile and data devices shows no signs of abating. Profits rose from £38.1m to £45.9m, with an underlying improvement of 45% excluding one-offs to £51.4m.Residential housing specialist Grainger said its sales pipeline in the four months to 31 January fell to £76.2m from £94.8m the same time a year earlier as challenging economic conditions continue.Outsourcing specialist Xchanging has parted ways with its chief executive and also binned its 2010 dividend after announcing a shock profits warning. Broker Peel Hunt has made an initial stab at forecasting 2011 earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) and has come up with a rough figure of £30m, down from its previous projection of £63.8m. The broker, which has a sell recommendation on the shares, believes the shares could halve in the short term, a prediction that quickly came to pass on the morning of the profits warning, as the shares plunged from an overnight price of `117p to 54.75p, before recovering somewhat.Technology-led plastics business Carclo is trading broadly in line with the board's expectations but in recent weeks the group has seen some order cancellations in optics and some evidence of inventory management by its global teletronic customers. Shares in online gaming software designer Playtech are on the up on reports that bookmaker Ladbrokes is discussing a takeover. Fully listed cash shell Worthington Group has appointed Beaumont Cornish as its financial adviser and this could be a precursor to a move to AIM.Shares in Real Estate Opportunities (REO) jumped after the communities and local government secretary Eric Pickles approved the company's plans to build flats, offices and shops on the site of the former Battersea Power Station in London. FTSE 100 - RisersGKN (GKN) 216.00p +2.66%Whitbread (WTB) 1,836.00p +2.40%Prudential (PRU) 731.50p +2.24%Weir Group (WEIR) 1,654.00p +2.04%Severn Trent (SVT) 1,469.00p +1.87%Smiths Group (SMIN) 1,429.00p +1.85%Centrica (CNA) 333.80p +1.77%National Grid (NG.) 561.00p +1.45%BAE Systems (BA.) 350.90p +1.42%Resolution Ltd. (RSL) 270.50p +1.39%FTSE 100 - FallersInternational Power (IPR) 330.40p -21.48%Essar Energy (ESSR) 501.00p -5.11%Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 3,270.00p -5.08%Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,456.00p -3.77%Sage Group (SGE) 286.70p -3.44%Kazakhmys (KAZ) 1,569.00p -3.27%Anglo American (AAL) 3,297.50p -3.19%International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (IAG) 259.60p -3.17%Vedanta Resources (VED) 2,342.00p -2.98%African Barrick Gold (ABG) 522.00p -2.88%FTSE 250 - RisersCSR (CSR) 445.30p +9.28%Ocado Group (OCDO) 275.00p +7.30%AZ Electronic Materials SA (WI) (AZEM) 318.00p +4.54%National Express Group (NEX) 258.20p +3.28%London Stock Exchange Group (LSE) 920.00p +3.14%Avis Europe (AVE) 230.90p +3.08%Supergroup (SGP) 1,793.00p +2.75%Tate & Lyle (TATE) 592.00p +2.69%Talvivaara Mining Company (TALV) 622.00p +2.64%Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 546.50p +2.53%FTSE 250 - FallersVictrex (VCT) 1,320.00p -6.78%Stobart Group Ltd. (STOB) 154.20p -5.75%Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC) 46.99p -4.63%Imagination Technologies Group (IMG) 366.80p -3.32%Centamin Egypt Ltd. (CEY) 138.00p -3.23%Laird (LRD) 173.60p -3.02%Croda International (CRDA) 1,456.00p -3.00%Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT) 577.00p -2.94%Daejan Holdings (DJAN) 2,770.00p -2.84%Savills (SVS) 372.60p -2.82%