RAMSEY CROOKALL

25th   July

Morning Report

The FTSE 100 trades flat paring earlier losses as mining stocks push up on recovering metals prices. Spot gold prices hit a record high of $1623.49, before paring gains. As such, gold miner Fresnillo leads the FTSE 100 index, up 3.9% with Randgold Resources shares up 0.8%. Additionally, National Grid shares are up 1.2%, after a solid trading update while Wolseley shares up 0.9%, on news it is selling two of its companies. Bank shares continue to weigh as worries about US debt grow as US policy makers were unable to come to an agreement on the issue over the weekend. Barclays down 2.4% and Lloyds Banking Group down 2.3%. No major economic data is due.

Power and gas grid operator National Grid leads the risers in the FTSE 100. Its operational and financial performance since the beginning of April was described as 'solid' by chief executive, Steve Holiday. "We reconfirm our positive outlook for 2011/12 - we expect to deliver another year of good operating performance, although, as previously highlighted, comparative financial results will show some impact from the timing differences that benefited 2010/11," Holiday said.

Strong growth in developing markets helped household and healthcare products group Reckitt Benckiser offset weakness in Europe to post pre-tax profits of £1.04bn, up from £971m over the same period the previous year, on revenues that soared to £4.62bn from £4.06bn.

Assets under management (AuM) at asset manager Aberdeen Asset Management edged up 2.5% in the second quarter of 2011, to £185.8bn, from £181.2bn at the end of March. Net new business inflows in the corresponding quarter of 2010 totalled £0.3bn.

Wolfson Electronics, the supplier of chips for hi-tech gadgets such as smartphones and tablet computers fell sharply after it lowered its growth predictions for the full-year. The company, which only last month issued a warning that revenue growth for the full-year would be between 10% and 20%, said it “now anticipates growth of less than 10% on a full-year basis, with the precise outcome dependent on timing of key customer product launches and overall end product sell-through.”

THE FTSE 100 at 10:50                      Down             3              @      5931

THE DOW JONES closed                      Down             43             @      12681                             NASDAQ COMP closed                         Up               24            @      2858                                        Exchange Rates

GBP – USD           1.6290 GBP - EURO         1.1314