RAMSEY CROOKALL & CO

25th  November 2011

Evening Report

The FTSE 100 ends up 0.7%, with banks pacing the advance. RBS and Lloyds were up 4.3% and 3.5%, respectively. Meanwhile, investors  said that despite the positive finish, worries about euro-zone debt continue to weigh, so it remains to be seen whether the positive tone can continue into next week.

Vedanta was the biggest faller, on news that the firm is coming under pressure to deal with its level of debt. Deutsche Bank sparked the worries after it cut its target price on the stock from £21 to £16.7 and made a statement saying: "We believe the key question for investors is whether Vedanta will breach covenants and whether the subsidiaries can service the parent level debt. In our view this depends increasingly on a robust oil price, as Cairn India [which Vedanta is buying will need to provide the majority of dividends to service parent level interest payments.”

Contract caterer Compass was on the up after agreeing to acquire Supercare Services Group, a South African cleaning company.

Severn Trent, best known as a water utility but also a supplier of water and waste water treatment solutions, was short of support. Profits came in towards the bottom end of expectations. Interim profit before tax tumbled 35.4% to £65.3m from £101.1m the year before, but with exceptional items and losses on financial instruments stripped out, profits were more or less flat, at £155.0m, versus £168.0m last year.

Thomas Cook and market competitor TUI Travel were both on the up after it was reported that the cash-strapped Thomas Cook is set to survive though the Christmas period thanks to the support of its banks.

Dixons Retail, the struggling electrical retailer, continued to rise on news that it appears to be stemming losses as it seeks to transform itself into a service led company.

THE FTSE 100  closed                     Up       37     @      5,164

THE DOW JONES at 16:40                Up       55     @      11313  

THE NASDAQ COMP at 16.40 was Up 8 @      2468                                         

Exchange Rates

GBP – USD     @ 16.40        1.5471 GBP - EURO   @ 16.40        1.1674