RAMSEY CROOKALL & CO

MIDDAY REPORT

24 SEPTEMBER 2010

The FTSE 100 has opened lower with the heavyweight sectors of banks and miners both heading south.

Speculation over the power struggle at the top of global banking giant HSBC has dominated early proceedings in London. Reports suggest that current chief executive Mike Geohegan will leave at the end of the year after failing to get the job of executive chairman.

Meanwhile, the government-appointed Independent Commission on Banking confirmed it will consider whether the major UK banks should split their retail and investment arms or be forced to divest assets to boost competition.

Miners are out of favour led by Kazakhmys, Antofagasta and Anglo-American on fears over metal prices.

Sector news is being largely ignored. Mining giant BHP Billiton has received the green light for development of the Macedon gas field in the Exmouth Sub-basin, Western Australia. Project costs will be in the region of $1.5bn. BHP’s rival, Rio Tinto, meanwhile, is to plough $230m into its operations at the Dampier Port in Western Australia to expand capacity.

And Dana Petroleum’s valiant rearguard action against the takeover bid by the Korea National Oil Corporation (KNOC) has failed. KNOC has declared its £18 a share offer wholly unconditional after almost two-thirds of Dana’s shareholders backed the deal. The Koreans went hostile a month ago after Aberdeen-based Dana refused their advances, declaring the company worth far more than the £1.8bn on the table.



THE FTSE 100 AT 12.00 IS DOWN 18 @ 5528

THE DOW JONES CLOSED DOWN 76 @ 10,662

THE NASDAQ COMP CLOSED DOWN 7 @ 2327

Exchange Rates

GBP – USD 1. 572 GBP – EUR 1. 172

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