London midday: Stocks nudge lower as investors sift through corporate news
London stocks had drifted a little lower by midday as investors sifted through corporate news and kept an eye on developments between Russia and the US following the US missile attack on Syria last week.
The FTSE 100 was down 0.1% to 7,344.63, while the pound was up 0.3% versus the dollar at 1.2401.
Meanwhile, oil prices rose following another shutdown at Libya's Sharara oilfield and amid mounting geopolitical tensions. West Texas Intermediate was up 0.6% to $52.58 a barrel and Brent crude was 0.7% firmer at $55.65.
Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell said: "With little for investors to dine on bar Barclays’ chief Jes Staley’s bad behaviour the markets gradually slipped into the red."
Market participants were also likely to be looking closely at the relationship between the US and Russia after President Putin and Iranian leader Hassan Rouhani said the US had crossed a "red line" with its missile strikes on Syria last week.
A special session of the Group of 7 industrialised nations in Lucca, Italy, will also be in focus, with foreign ministers set to discuss the situation in Syria.
On the corporate front, Barclays was a little lower after City watchdogs launched an investigation into its chief executive's attempts to uncover the identity of a secret whistleblower at the bank. After its own investigation, the bank has issues a formal written reprimand to CEO Jes Staley and will cut his bonus by a "very significant" amount, as well as passing the details onto the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.
BHP Billiton rallied after activist investor Elliott Management urged the company's directors to cancel the miner's London listing in a unification with its Australian headquarters and to dispose of its US petroleum business. The hedge fund said these measures would result in shareholders enjoying a 51% increase in the attributable value of their shares. However, the miner responded by saying that the risks and costs associated with Elliott's proposals would outweigh any benefits.
Anglo American rose after saying it will sell its Eskom-tied thermal coal operations in South Africa to Seriti Resources Holdings Proprietary, a company majority owned by historically disadvantaged South Africans, for 2.3bn rand ($164m).
Facilities manager Carillion was also on the front foot after its joint venture was awarded the Hestia South East and London Region Multi Activity Contract with a potential value of up to £200m across an initial contract period of five years.
Shaftesbury racked up strong gains following a report that Hong Kong billionaire Samuel Tak Lee has built up a stake of nearly 20% in the company, prompting speculation of a potential takeover bid.
Gold miner Centamin lost its shine after it reported a 13% drop in gold production at its Sukari mine in Egypt, while Randgold Resources and Fresnillo retreated in tandem with gold prices .
AstraZeneca slipped as Jefferies downgraded the stock to 'hold' from 'buy', but Rio Tinto and Utilitywise gained ground after rating upgrades from CLSA and Macquarie, respectively.
Hikma Pharmaceuticals was lifted by an upgrade to 'buy' from 'add' at Numis.
There are no major UK data releases due but investors will be looking to a speech by US Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen at 2100 BST.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,344.63 -0.06%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,266.86 0.19%
techMARK (TASX) 3,437.67 0.01%
FTSE 100 - Risers
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,347.50p 4.66%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,928.00p 2.34%
Associated British Foods (ABF) 2,533.00p 1.97%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 532.50p 1.72%
Mediclinic International (MDC) 711.50p 1.72%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 342.20p 1.57%
St James's Place (STJ) 1,046.00p 1.55%
easyJet (EZJ) 1,057.00p 1.34%
Persimmon (PSN) 2,174.00p 1.30%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 3,291.50p 1.12%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
DCC (DCC) 6,965.00p -1.90%
Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 7,270.00p -1.89%
Fresnillo (FRES) 1,597.00p -1.66%
Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 2,991.00p -1.25%
Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 2,055.00p -1.25%
Royal Mail (RMG) 410.40p -1.16%
Old Mutual (OML) 189.80p -1.09%
Bunzl (BNZL) 2,321.00p -1.07%
Ashtead Group (AHT) 1,675.00p -0.95%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 3,876.50p -0.95%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Tullow Oil (TLW) 239.40p 5.93%
Thomas Cook Group (TCG) 87.55p 4.10%
Shaftesbury (SHB) 951.00p 3.54%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 403.70p 3.38%
Vedanta Resources (VED) 850.00p 3.09%
Drax Group (DRX) 319.20p 2.14%
Allied Minds (ALM) 171.40p 1.90%
NMC Health (NMC) 1,820.00p 1.73%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 170.00p 1.67%
Ashmore Group (ASHM) 371.00p 1.62%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Centamin (DI) (CEY) 177.10p -4.17%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 281.70p -1.98%
Polymetal International (POLY) 1,043.00p -1.97%
Debenhams (DEB) 53.45p -1.93%
SIG (SHI) 113.80p -1.73%
Capita (CPI) 537.50p -1.47%
Metro Bank (MTRO) 3,338.00p -1.42%
Hunting (HTG) 593.00p -1.33%
Senior (SNR) 210.20p -1.18%
Evraz (EVR) 235.30p -1.13%