RAMSEY CROOKALL & CO  6th July 2012 Evening Report

European markets extended declines for a third day as US employment figures increased less than forecast in June. The FTSE 100 closed down 0.52% with miners  weighing on the index.

Having promised on Thursday that it would raise money from disposals, insurance giant Aviva moved quickly to act on that pledge by saying it will sell more of its stake in Delta Lloyd than originally intended, prompting a sharp rise in its share price. Also providing a lift was Societe Generale which upgraded the stock from 'sell' to 'hold'.

Food, ingredients and retail firm Associated British Foods also rose after saying that it is to buy ethnic flour brand Elephant Atta from Premier Foods for £34m. Analysts at Panmure Gordon said this morning that the acquisition is a "perfect fit" for AB Foods. Meanwhile, miners were firmly out of favour today despite the Chinese rate cut as worries about a steep slowdown in the world's second-largest economy weighed on sentiment. Polymetal, Evraz, Kazakhmys, Glencore and Rio Tinto were all registering losses.

Plumbing and heating group Wolseley was being pressured lower after Morgan Stanley downgraded its rating on the stock to 'equal weight'. Meanwhile, Barclays was lower after after Bernstein cut its rating to 'market perform'.

Support services firm Carillion was a heavy faller after UBS downgraded the stock from 'neutral' to 'sell' and cut its target price from 285p to 230p. UBS said that the firm's first-half trading update showed a "deterioration in growth prospects" and that UK construction margins are "clearly not sustainable".

THE FTSE 100             closed       Down     30       @      5,662 THE DOW JONES            @ 16:40      Down     176      @     12719 THE NASDAQ               @ 16:40      Down      43      @      2932 Exchange Rates GBP – USD        @      16:40          1.5478 GBP - EURO      @      16:40          1.2586