RAMSEY CROOKALL & CO 24th  November 2011

Evening Report

The FTSE 100 ends down 0.2%, closing with small losses. With US markets closed, volumes have been very thin. This is the ninth-consecutive negative finish for the UK's headline index. Corporate news has been quiet too. Mid-cap stock Dixons Retail ends up 7.1%. Its 1H results are ahead of expectations but the company is still cautious on the outlook as the consumer environment looks difficult. Thomas Cook bounced back with force after a torrid week following its negotiations with its banks. It ends 47% higher. But the focus has inevitably been on Europe. German Chancellor Merkel's dismissal of euro-zone bonds as an answer to Europe's problems dents sentiment a touch.

Vedanta Resources, Fresnillo, Kazakhmys and Xstrata all performed well. The sector still remained 7.67% down on the week after bearing the brunt of investors’ macro-economic fears.

However, Antofagasta was underperforming the sector, after its nine-month results were mildly disappointing. Group earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) surged 28.0% to $2,505.5m from $1,957.3m the year before. The number would have been $390.3m higher but for negative mark-to-market adjustments of provisional sales at the period end.

There has been a reappraisal of Scottish engineer Weir's acquisition of Texan hydraulic fracturing specialist Seaboard announced yesterday. Initial reaction yesterday was negative, but a number of brokers seem pleased with the deal today. Panmure Gordon raised its full-year estimates, while Peel Hunt upgraded the stock from hold to buy.

Defensive stocks sold off today. Pharmaceutical peers Shire, GlaxoSmithKline and AstraZeneca were in the red, joined by utility stocks National Grid and Severn Trent, and tobacco giants British American and Imperial.

Contract caterer Compass Group nudged higher after Panmure Gordon updated its earnings forecasts and bumped up its price target following the company's results yesterday. The new target price is 658p, up from 643p. The broker rates the shares as a buy.

THE FTSE 100 Closed                             Down      12           @      5,127

THE DOW JONES                                   Thanks Giving Holiday

THE NASDAQ COMP                                 Thanks Giving Holiday

Exchange Rates

GBP – USD     @ 16.40        1.5491 GBP - EURO   @ 16.40        1.1622