RAMSEY CROOKALL & CO MORNING MARKET REPORT

1st JUNE 2010

Shares in BP slide this morning dragging the London index lower. BP are down 12% as all of its attempts to stem the Gulf of Mexico oil spillage come to nothing. Attention is focusing on the future of chief executive Tony Hayward, with the US government increasingly frustrated by BP’s failure to cap the leak. The cost of the clean up has now reached $1 billion, BP added in its latest update.

Prudential’s $35.5 billion bid for American International Group’s Asian business looks in disarray after the US insurer refused to renegotiate the price down to nearer $30 billion. Pru’s shares are up 22p at 564p.

The negative mood has not been helped by the European Central Bank’s warning of nearly €200 billion of bad loans sitting in European banks’ balance sheets. Royal Bank of Scotland is a penny lower at 46p.

Responding to speculation in the weekend press, hotels and coffee shop group Whitbread has said it has no plans to raise funds through an equity issue. The Independent newspaper has run a story on Sunday which suggested that the Premier Inn and Costa Coffee owner is planning to raise ?100 million this summer through a private placement.

Irish no-frills airline Ryanair swung strongly back into the black last year and proposed a €500 million special dividend with the possibility of another €500 million in three years time. Pre tax profits for the year to March came in at €341 against a loss of €181 million.

World Markets

THE FTSE 100 AT 9.55 IS DOWN 110 @ 5077

THE DOW JONES CLOSED DOWN 122 @ 10,136

THE NASDAQ COMP CLOSED DOWN 20 @ 2257

Exchange Rates

GBP – USD 1. 45

GBP – EUR 1. 19