RAMSEY CROOKALL & CO

5th September 2012

Evening  Report

The FTSE 100 ends 0.2% lower at 5657.86, led down by miners and oil stocks. Worries about chinese growth, a fall in iron-ore prices and weaker-than-expected Australian 2Q growth figures weigh on miners. More than one-tenth of the top-share index's constituents are trading in ex-dividend format today, which is acting as a millstone around the benchmark's neck. European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi is widely expected to unveil plans on Thursday for buying sovereign debt in order to bring down bond yields in peripheral nations. FTSE 100

Potential merger partners Xstrata and Glencore were on the rise ahead of a crucial day on Friday, when shareholders vote on the proposed tie-up. Qatar Holdings, which owns around 12% of the miner, is among the several shareholders who have already voiced their opposition to the merger.

Oil titan BP was falling heavily this morning on press reports that the US Department of Justice is intent on throwing the book at the company for its part in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, as it seeks to have the maximum possible penalties imposed on the British firm.

Several stocks were lower after going ex-dividend today, meaning that investors will not be able to access the firm's latest payout. These include: Aggreko, ARM Holdings, BHP Billiton, Diageo, Evraz, IMI, Kazakhmys, Resolution, Serco, Shire and Tullow Oil.

Financial services provider and asset management group Hargreaves Lansdown was flat despite saying total assets under administration rose 7% in the year ended 30th June 2012 while profit jumped 21% despite continued market volatility.

Insurance group Prudential gained after completing the acquisition of SRLC American Holdings Corp from Swiss Re after receiving all necessary regulatory approvals.

Shares of BG Group are dropping towards the bottom of the pile after analysts at Jefferies lowered their price target for the company to 1,800p from 2,000p.

Telecoms group BT Group was benefitting from a broker upgrade from JPMorgan Cazenove, who lifted its rating from 'neutral' to 'overweight'. FTSE 250 Drinks companies Britvic and AG Barr have announced that they are in discussions about an all- share merger which would create "one of the leading soft drinks companies in Europe". Shares in Britvic surged by nearly 14%, while AG Barr was up around 7%. At today's prices, the market cap of the combined group would be around £1.4bn.

Sporting goods retailer Sports Direct gained after saying total sales for the 13 weeks ending July 29th were up 25.3% after sales were "boosted by the tremendous performance of Team GB at the London Olympics."

Investors of airline easyJet celebrated the group's plans to give up the 'no reserved seats' format it pioneered after customers said they would rather avoid the scramble traditionally associated with boarding a low cost flight.

THE FTSE 100 Closed            Down           14        @  5,657 THE DOW JONES @ 16.30          Up             45        @   13,081 THE NASDAQ COMP @ 16.30        Up             3         @  3,078

Exchange Rates

GBP – USD     @ 16.30            1.5911 GBP - EURO    @ 16.30            1.2622