Burberry leads FTSE 100 up
The blue chip index was up in early trading, led by fashion retailer Burberry and UK banking shares.
The collapse of the merger talks between BAE and EADS and Direct Line’s £2.62bn float were the main talking points this morning.
Nat Rothschild’s Bumi rose 15.35 per cent in early trading on the mid-cap index, as it announced it had received a proposal from shareholder the Bakrie family to cancel their shareholding in Bumi, in exchange for the Indonesian assets they brought in two years previously.
Burberry was trading 7.68 per cent up. This morning it announced like-for-like retail sales rose by one per cent over the three months to September, following a profit warning last month.
Premier Foods added over five per cent, while packaging firm DS Smith added 4.68 per cent on news that it will save more from an earlier acquisition than previously thought.
At the other end of the spectrum, WH Smith fell 5.44 per cent on news that its chief executive, Kate Swann, is to step down after nine years at the helm.
Takeaway food outlet Greggs lost 4.34 per cent as it warned underlying sales would remain negative for the rest of the year.
Kenmare Resources fell 3.22 per cent in early deals, despite reporting increased production in its third quarter.
UK banks led the FTSE 100 up in early trading. HSBC rose 0.71 per cent, RBS was up 2.28 per cent, Barclays increased 2.48 per cent and Lloyds Banking Group was up 5.15 per cent.
In Asia, the Nikkei closed 0.58 per cent down, and in the US the Dow Jones closed 0.95 per cent down.