London midday: Banks lead Footsie higher

Blue chips have continued their recent surge with banks among the top risers as sentiment in the sector is boosted by last week's earnings reports from US rivals.Lloyds Banking is the best performer on a weekend report it could post an interim profit despite enormous bad-debt provisions. Some of its most toxic sub-prime investments have clawed back billions of pounds of value in recent months, the reports suggested. Royal Bank of Scotland Group is also one of the major risers. Miners are going well on the back of China's GDP numbers last week and the encouraging results announcements in the US. BHP Billiton and Kazakhmys are the best performers. Life insurance consolidator Resolution has insisted that any deal with Friends Provident must see it take control of the enlarged company. Resolution also sweetened its offer to increase its appeal to small shareholders by offering to pay cash for the first 2,500 shares of any holding and will pay a 2009 annual dividend.Other life groups are up in line with the rise in equity markets around the world. Prudential and Legal & General are the best performers. Property website Rightmove says the average asking price for a house rose 0.6% in July to an average £227,864, narrowing the annual rate of decline to 3.1% from 5.5% in June. It's the fifth rise in the past six months. Prices jumped 1.4% in Greater London to £402,761. Housebuilder Bovis is the best riser in the sector this morning, but Taylor Wimpey and Barratt are also well ahead. Heavy price promotions helped Domino's Pizza lift sales in the half year to 26 June by 15% from a year ago to £196.4m in spite of the tough economic environment. The pizza delivery group also reported pre-tax profits jumped 25% to £13.6m. The dividend rises 30% to 3.5p. Russia-focused gold miner Peter Hambro called a 54% hike in first half attributable gold production "very pleasing" and predicted the traditional uplift in second half output. Production hit 222,600 ounces in the six months to 30 June versus 144,600 a year earlier. It sold 210,000 ounces of gold, up from 118,800, at an average $917 an ounceProperty fund manager Capital & Regional has seen further falls in the value of its portfolios in the last three months, though occupancy level were broadly unchanged. NAV of the 16.7% owned Mall fund fell by 9.3% to 23.8p between March and June. The 13.4% owned Junction fund NAV fell by 4.4% to 23.7p, while the 19.4% owned X-Leisure fund fell by 2.7% to 40.3p.SThree just managed to stay in profit after the recruitment firm saw revenues hit by tough global economic conditions. In the year to May 31, pre-tax profits fell to £2.7m from £21.8m over the same period the previous year as revenues dropped to £280.6m from £295.4m.