Market report - Monday close

By THIS IS MONEY
Updated:

 

Today's excitement on the markets was provided by a four-hour long technical glitch which saw the FTSE price vanish from traders screens all morning. Frustrated traders complained the hiccup meant they had difficulty gauging where the market was heading.

Downwards was the answer, and by lunchtime when it finally showed its face on City screens, dealers probably wished it hadn't bothered.

Uninspired afternoon trading tallied with the weather and by the close the FTSE-100 was a dampened 78.1 points lower at 6462.1. Technology shares took yet another battering, not helped by losses on the technology dominated US Nasdaq exchange.

And the regular monthly worries over the Bank of England's interest rates decision on Thursday was compounded by a lack of agreement among experts over a rise or a hold decision.

Computer services group CMG dived £10.49 at £43.27, as it announced it was taking over rival Admiral in a £1.4bn all-share deal. Admiral jumped 152 1/2 p to £15.82 1/2 as dealers warmed to the offer.

Logica was down 184p at £19.17, while software group Sage fell 46 1/2 p to 657p and computer company Sema was 71p lighter at £11.81.

Other technology stocks added to the market's lacklustre performance, with telecoms group Kingston Communications off 85p to 919p, chip designers Arm down 298p to £34.92 and Internet firm Freeserve off 39p at 458p.

HSBC's £6.6bn deal to buy French bank CCF announced over the weekend, was not received well and shares fell 41p to 700p.

But some stocks managed to put some sunshine on the FTSE leaderboard.

Railtrack chugged up 44p to 777 1/2 p on weekend reports that profit restrictions, imposed by rail regulators could be lifted. Still on trains, Abbey National splashed out £1.4 billion buying the Porterbrook train leasing company from Stagecoach and added 32 1/2 p to its share price to stand at 857 1/2 p.

Stagecoach, however, dropped 51 1/4 p to 70 1/4 p - a 42% dive - after it warned its was facing cost pressures in is UK and US bus businesses.

Rexam, the packaging company, signalled the end of its three-year restructuring programme to concentrate on consumer packaging with the £1.4 billion takeover of canned drinks giant American National Can Group. Analysts welcomed the deal which gives Rexam global leadership in the sector and a strong bridgehead into the UK drinks canning market.

Shares fizzed 12 1/4 p to 226 1/4 p.

Menswear tailor Moss Bros was less well-dressed after reporting a 51% drop in profits. Shares stripped off 3p to 52p on the news.

Footsie rises were Legal & General, up 12 1/4 p at 175 1/2 p, Diageo, up 33 3/4 p at 504 3/4 p, Barclays, up 110p at £17.72 and British Aerospace, up 22 1/4 p at 376 1/4 p.

Fallers were CMG, down £10.49 at £43.27, WPP, down 114p at 988p, Reuters, down 120p at £11.52 and Logica, down 184p at £19.17.

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