London open: Modest fall for Footsie

London's top stocks have opened lower but the decline is modest compared to the hammering US blue chips took overnight.British Airways record pre-tax loss of £531m is providing some distraction. The carrier was hit by strike action, bad winter weather disruption and the impact from the global recession. The pre-tax loss in the year ended 31 March compares with a £401m loss last year. Revenue fell by £1bn to £7,994m (2009: £8,992m).Miners have also picked up with Rio Tinto and Xstrata leading a sector rally. On the downside, Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds are unsettled again over the their possible exposure to the problems in the eurozone. BP is also weak on reports it has underestimated the extent of the leak in the Gulf of Mexico. Merchant bank Close Brothers remains confident of delivering a solid overall result for the 2010 financial year after a good third quarter performance. The group's Banking and Securities divisions both put in good shifts in the February to April quarter - the group's third quarter - while the outcome at the Asset Management division was more modest.London Stock Exchange called its full-year performance "resilient" despite a 21% drop in full-year profit before one-off items. The profit before acquisition amortization and exceptional costs fell to £242m in the year to 31 March from £304.7m in 2009, reflecting costs from the acquisition of MillenniumIT. Total profit was £114.3m compared with a £250.8m loss last time when the numbers were hit by a £555m one-off charge. Oil and gas firm Soco International said that a rig has been secured for an appraisal drilling on its Te Giac Den discovery. The company has been informed by the Hoang Long joint operating company, operator of Block 16-1 in the Cuu Long Basin offshore Vietnam, that the jack up rig Maersk Convincer has been secured to drill the Te Giac Den 2X appraisal well. Higher borrowing costs knocked United Utilities profits last year despite an increase in the contribution from the core water business. Pre-tax profits in the year to March fell to £474m from £529m, with underlying profits coming in at £500m against £531m, slightly below forecasts.Trading in the shares of online betting group Leisure & Gaming has ben suspended while the company seeks to resolve cash flow difficulties. The company said that football results have continued to go against the company's book and this has dented profitability and hit the company's cash position. As a result the company now finds itself constrained by a lack of working capital.Speciality pharmaceuticals company BTG exceeded its financial goals in fiscal 2009/10 as it moved solidly into the black. Profit before tax in the year to end-March 2010 totalled £9.1m, compared to a loss of £11.3m in the preceding year.