RAMSEY CROOKALL

5th    August

Evening Report

The FTSE dropped 2.71% in a volatile session trading session. The index, which initially lost as much as 3.5%, rebounded to trade broadly flat after better-than -expected U.S. jobs data before selling off again as early gains on Wall Street ran out of momentum.

Satellite operator Inmarsat was back on the up after its share price plunged yesterday following reports of a dismal outlook for its maritime sector, its core business.

Commodity trading house Glencore followed suit after Citi analysts released a note saying that it was offering one of the best returns on its share price. But just one day after announcing that its underlying pre-tax profits in the first quarter was up by 1.6% from the same period the previous year at £65m, British Land's share price was heading south In other company news, medical devices firm Smith & Nephew reported higher revenues and profits in the quarter to 3 July, but said margins were “disappointing” due to higher sales of lower margin products and other factors. Revenue climbed to $1.077bn (£659m) from $959m over the same period the previous year, while operating profit rose to $236m from $226m.

First half profits at insurance titan Prudential jumped by a quarter to top expectations, driven by strong growth in Asia. Operating profit, on an International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) basis, rose 25% from £0.85bn to £1.06bn, ahead of expectations of £0.96bn.

THE FTSE 100 closed                    Down         146        @       5246

THE DOW JONES at 16:40                 Down         99         @       11282                          NASDAQ COM at 16:40                    Down         50         @       2505                                      Exchange Rates

GBP – USD           1.1539 GBP - Euro 1.1539