Smaller caps: Monday close

By THIS IS MONEY
Updated:

 

Shares in the UK's smaller companies bucked the downward trend set by their blue-chip counterparts as fear of a rise in US interest rates on Tuesday left traders in an uncertain mood. The FTSE Small Caps Index ended the session up 6.8 points at 3204.1.

Football clubs, ever present among the index movers, were again in the frame as the season draws to a close. Birmingham City led the fans' revolt, losing 9 1/2p to 17 1/2p after their 4-0 home defeat in the play-off semi-final first leg against Barsley soured chances of a lucrative place in the Premiership.

Internet firms were also among the losers, suffering as New York's tech-heavy Nasdaq index opened lower. Threew.net was down 9p at 87 1/2p and Telme.com 3 1/2p lower at 44p. Bookham Technologies fell 362 1/2p at 3575p, despite a Goldman Sachs rating that set a target price of 4000p.

Newspaper share tipsters put paid to any hopes of a recovery for shares in insurance claim management firm Helphire, off 16p to 62 1/2p. The prediction of further falls followed a ruling in the House of Lords last week that cars hired to replace those damaged in accidents should cost the same as standard rentals.

The Sunday papers also weighed heavily on the fortunes of Belgian beer-and-mussels restaurant chain Belgo, which have fallen from a 12p high in 1998 to 4p last March. After a profits warning in January 2000, the firm announced a marked improvement in March trading and last week chairman Luke Johnson bought 11m shares. Investors should follow suit, said the Sunday Times, a comment that sent the shares cooking, closing up 3/4p at 4 3/4p.

Pub group Old English enjoyed a 13p rise to 109p after the Sunday Telegraph tipped it as a 'buy' as the company undergoes a restructuring programme. Car dealer Quicks lifted 4p to 43p, also on the back of positive nedwspaper comments.

Leading the Small Caps winners was Allied Textiles - up 34 1/2p to 137p - after a 160p-a-share agreed cash bid by Inhoco, which was revealed only after the market closed on Friday.

Software specialist Multimedia gained 1 1/4p to 7 1/2p after it announced 1999 pre-tax profits before one-off items of £21,300 on turnover of £178,000. Enterprise Asia jumped 1p to 6 1/4p on hopes of imminent acquisitions. Advanced Power Components rose 32 1/2p to 287 1/2p after the company said it had won its first major order, worth £300,000, for its ASDL line interface systems.

Share tips from the Sunday papers

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