FTSE 100 movers: RBS gets a kicking; investors chase Rio Tinto

Royal Band of Scotland shares were in the dog house on Friday after the state-owned bank reported a stonking £2bn interim loss.

Shares in the bank were down 6.4% in lunchtime trade. RBS attributed the loss to provisions to cover possible litigation costs linked to its 2008 rights issue just prior to its emergency rescue by taxpayers.

The lender reported an attributable loss of £2.05bn at the half-year stage, compared with a loss of £179m last year. Revenues fell 17% to £6.1bn.

That figure included £1.32bn in litigation and conduct charges, the bulk of which, £1.28bn, were incurred during the second quarter, with £450m of that amount being the result of charges linked to PPI claims.

Fellow banks Standard Chartered and Lloyds Banking Group were also sitting lower following the BoE's decision to cut interest rates.

Wolseley was under the cosh after Jefferies downgraded the builders’ merchant to ‘hold’ from ‘buy’ as it took a look at the impact of Brexit on the wider sector.

Going the other way, Rio Tinto shares jumped as it completed the sale of its Mount Pleasant thermal coal assets to MACH Energy Australia Pty, taking its tally for divestments since January 2013 to $4.7bn.

Other miners BHP Billiton, Anglo American and Antofagasta also gained as investors sought safe havens in gold and silver amid a risk environment.

Housebuilders, including Barratt Developments and Berkeley Group, were benefiting from the news of lower interest rates in the UK.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 6,741.31 0.02%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 2,378.00p 7.12%
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,017.50p 3.52%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 2,500.50p 3.31%
Persimmon (PSN) 1,718.00p 2.75%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 2,644.00p 2.40%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 511.00p 2.00%
Paddy Power Betfair (PPB) 8,980.00p 1.70%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 432.50p 1.67%
Anglo American (AAL) 858.80p 1.63%
Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 1,300.00p 1.48%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 179.60p -6.46%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 627.10p -2.93%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 743.50p -1.85%
Wolseley (WOS) 4,104.00p -1.70%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 5,068.00p -1.65%
Pearson (PSON) 881.50p -1.34%
Tesco (TSCO) 153.55p -1.29%
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,679.50p -1.15%
Dixons Carphone (DC.) 339.10p -1.08%
British Land Company (BLND) 663.00p -0.90%