London open: Markets subdued as investors await Greek developments

UK stock markets opened slightly lower on Wednesday, falling for the fourth straight day as investors awaited news flow from Greece.

London’s FTSE 100 was down 0.15% at 6,819 early on.

All eyes will be on the emergency meeting of Eurogroup finance ministers on Wednesday, where Greece's Yanis Varoufakis will make his debut appearance as he attempts to persuade his peers of the benefits of his bridging programme.

European leaders are likely to propose a six-month extension of the existing bailout programme.

The meeting, which kicks off on Wednesday, comes after new prime minister Alexis Tsipras comfortably won a confidence vote in parliament the previous day, assuring MPs that “there is no going back […] Greece cannot return to the era of bailouts”.

“A vote of confidence from their own government is all well and good, but after last week’s progress-less dry run, tonight is the true first step for Syriza on what could be a long road to recovery not only for Greece, but for the health and stability of the Eurozone,” said analyst Connor Campbell from Spreadex.

“With the meeting later today, a similar stream of unconfirmed reports is likely to leak out and lead the markets as the morning continues.”

Tullow suspends divi

Tullow Oil was a heavy faller after deciding to suspend its final dividend for 2014, as the exploration and production company swung to a loss of over $2bn on the back of hefty impairment charges and exploration write-offs.

In contrast, homeware retailer Dunelm pleased investors with a special dividend and a 10% increase in its interim payout after a 14% increase in sales in the first half, helped by strong growth online and new store openings.

Commodities trader and mining giant Glencore was subdued after the announcement that it has scaled back its spending plans for 2015. However, shares in Lonmin dropped after Glencore said it is looking to divest its “non-core” 23.9% stake in the South African platinum miner.

BT Group surged after winning rights to show more Premier League (EPL) matches over the next three seasons, as a hotly-anticipated auction came to an end. BT won two out of the seven packages of rights that were on offer and will pay £320m per season.

Sky, however, which won five packs of live EPL rights, dropped sharply early on after saying it would by paying £1.39bn per annum, a bigger-than-expected 83% increase on the existing contract.

In the first results after offloading its drugs business, Reckitt Benckiser delivered fourth-quarter net revenue growth comfortably ahead of forecasts, helping shares higher.

Chip designer ARM Holdings also gained after enjoying a strong finish to 2014 with its best-ever quarterly revenues as a record number of licences were signed, many by new customers.

Market Movers
techMARK 3,112.13 +0.57%
FTSE 100 6,818.81 -0.15%
FTSE 250 16,647.58 -0.07%

FTSE 100 - Risers
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 5,800.00p +3.76%
ARM Holdings (ARM) 1,094.00p +3.60%
BT Group (BT.A) 459.30p +3.49%
United Utilities Group (UU.) 983.50p +2.39%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 551.50p +2.32%
Persimmon (PSN) 1,650.00p +2.29%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 464.40p +1.02%
Experian (EXPN) 1,198.00p +0.93%
Severn Trent (SVT) 2,076.00p +0.83%
Hammerson (HMSO) 690.00p +0.73%

FTSE 100 - Fallers
Sky (SKY) 913.50p -4.25%
Tullow Oil (TLW) 400.70p -3.28%
GKN (GKN) 367.20p -2.47%
Anglo American (AAL) 1,124.50p -2.13%
Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 976.50p -1.91%
Schroders (SDR) 2,911.00p -1.75%
Royal Mail (RMG) 424.90p -1.69%
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,472.00p -1.54%
Standard Life (SL.) 395.80p -1.27%
BG Group (BG.) 923.20p -1.19%

FTSE 250 - Risers
Telecity Group (TCY) 979.00p +15.38%
Redrow (RDW) 327.60p +10.38%
Dunelm Group (DNLM) 903.00p +4.15%
Vedanta Resources (VED) 445.70p +3.22%
Afren (AFR) 9.55p +2.63%
Bellway (BWY) 1,916.00p +2.46%
Diploma (DPLM) 809.00p +2.41%
Pennon Group (PNN) 846.00p +2.17%
WH Smith (SMWH) 1,300.00p +1.96%
Bwin.party Digital Entertainment (BPTY) 104.40p +1.95%

FTSE 250 - Fallers
Indivior (INDV) 154.10p -10.09%
Thomas Cook Group (TCG) 125.80p -5.56%
Lonmin (LMI) 163.20p -5.34%
Poundland Group (PLND) 396.40p -4.92%
Nostrum Oil & Gas (NOG) 530.50p -3.81%
Alent (ALNT) 343.00p -3.46%
Electrocomponents (ECM) 204.80p -3.17%
esure Group (ESUR) 234.70p -3.10%
Premier Oil (PMO) 161.10p -3.01%
Allied Minds (ALM) 442.00p -2.84%