This Week's Market Movers
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Well, it's been yet another stormy week on the stock market seas.
In fact, volatility across the markets seems to be becoming the norm.
This week alone saw the FTSE 100 index (the 'Footsie') nosedive almost 4% on Monday, on the back of news that the US Federal Reserve had to bail out Bear Stearns, the fifth-largest US securities firm.
This was followed by a rally on Tuesday after the Fed took the spotlight again, cutting US interest rates by a dramatic 0.75%. As a result, the Footsie bounced back 3.5%.
However, the cut wasn't enough to bolster the market to a full recovery, and after this week's dizzy spell, the FTSE 100 ended the week down 2.3% at 5501.70.
Biggest Movers in the FTSE 350 (as at Thursday 10.00)
Premier Farnell
(LSE: PFL)
was the biggest riser in the FTSE 350 this week. The electrical component distributor charged up 13.9% after announcing strong results.
After taking a knock last week, Rentokil Initial
(LSE: RTO)
was up 12%, after a change of management gave the hygiene specialists a new lease of life.
Pharmaceutical stocks were also on a high. Shire Pharmaceuticals
(LSE: SHP)
was again the focus of bid talk, sending shares up 6%.
Other pharmaceutical stocks also received a positive injection. AstraZeneca
(LSE: AZN)
shot up 5%, and GlaxoSmithKline
(LSE: GSK)
was boosted by 6.8%.
Banks, which have suffered recent batterings over credit crunch fears, had a mixed week.
HBOS
(LSE: HBOS)
bore the brunt of the financial misery, as Britain's largest mortgage lender plunged 13% on the back of reports that it had approached the Bank of England for an emergency loan.
An hour after the rumour sent the stock into freefall, The Bank of England was forced to issue an unprecedented denial that HBOS was in trouble.
It is thought that some investors were employing 'trash 'n' cash' practices, where artificial ripples are sent through the stock market so rogue investors can profit from plunging stocks.
Elsewhere in the sector, heavyweight HSBC
(LSE: HSBA)
was top of the banking picks, up 5%. Lloyds TSB
(LSE: LLOY)
was also up 1%.
Barclays
(LSE: BARC)
fell 2.3%, Alliance and Leicester
(LSE: AL.)
shed 3.7% and RBS
(LSE: RBS)
dropped 5%.
The fallout from Bear Stearns also hit inter dealer broker ICAP
(LSE: IAP)
, which plunged 11%. Stocks recovered slightly after they announced that profits would be better than expected.
Falling metal prices placed a chink in many miners' armours this week, causing many to slide down.
Kazakhmys
(LSE: KAZ)
was the hardest hit, falling 17%. Vendanta
(LSE: VED)
burrowed down 15% and Lonmin
(LSE: LMI)
dropped 14%.
In addition, Xstrata
(LSE: XTA)
had 9% excavated off its share price, with Rio Tinto
(LSE: RIO)
also down 11%.
Yellow Pages publisher Yell Group
(LSE: YELL)
was the biggest Footsie faller this week, plummeting nearly 18% as rumours circulated that the company had breached the terms of its borrowing.
Pub group Mitchells and Butlers
(LSE: MAB)
fell 13.5% after being forced to deny a sobering note from Lehman Brothers that the company would need a cash injection. Mitchells and Butlers insisted that trading was robust.
Notable announcements next week
Tuesday: Uniq
Wednesday: Bellway, EG Solutions
Thursday: Cairn Energy, Clintons
Friday: Christie Group, CLS Holdings
Trading announcements are expected from Topps Tiles, Liontrust Asset Management, London Stock Exchange Group, Mitie Group and Robert Wiseman.
