UK equities have made a brighter start than expected, with miners leading the way.
The FTSE 100 index is up 23 points, or 0.4%, at 6,687, with risers outnumbering fallers by around 10 to one.
Randgold Resources (LON:RRS), up 2.7%, is the best performer after Citigroup upgraded the stock to ‘neutral’ from ‘sell’ and bumping up its price target from 3544p to 4897p. Fellow precious metals miner Fresnillo (LON:FRES) is also going well, up 0.9%.
Vodafone (LON:VOD) is another enjoying a broker boost, having seen its price target lifted to 216p from 238p while Anglo American (LON:AAL), up 1.2%, shrugs off a price target reduction from 1500p to 1460p by Deutsche Bank.
Hammerson (LON:HMSO) is wanted after full-year results that showed earnings per share rose 10.5% to 23.1p from 20.9p the year before, paving the way for an 8% hike in the full-year dividend to 10.8p.
While the big beasts of the mining sector are in favour, their smaller peers are experiencing mixed fortunes.
Mariana Resources (LON:MARL) jumps 7.3% after it unveiled positive channel sampling and mapping results at its gold, silver, copper Soledad prospect in Peru.
Sunrise Resources (LON:SRES) has made a bright start to the day, up 12.7%, after it said it has acquired two groups of mineral claims targeting copper, gold and industrial metals in Nevada.
Shaft Sinkers (LON:SHFT), though, is down in the dumps after it revealed 2013 revenues would be lower than the year before, while profits will be “materially below expectations” after what chief executive Alon Davidov called an “extremely difficult trading period”.
However, the group revealed it remains on a sound financial footing, while Davidov said the business has “solid fundamentals”. This point is underscored by a significant order book which stands at £350mln.
Shares have lost a fifth of their value today.
Elsewhere among the small caps, the ever-busy Magnolia Petroleum (LON:MAGP) is up 3.6% after it revealed it is to participate in a programme of eight wells on a lease operated by Devon Energy in Oklahoma.
The AIM quoted oil junior will have a 4.1% net revenue interest in the first of these wells, Marion 1-23, which is currently being drilled.
Elsewhere in the sector, Oilex (LON:OEX) is little changed after raising US$6.8mln through the issue of 95mln shares at 7.2 cents each, to pay for the continued development of the Cambay project.
OPG Power Ventures (LON:OPG) has been on a terrific run this year, rising from 58p at the end of 2013 to 80.75p at the end of last week, but, as often happens, a trading update has prompted some holders to bank profits, even though the statement was upbeat and positive.
The Indian firm said its two latest electricity plants are on time and on budget as it confirmed full-year results are on target to meet City forecasts.
Shares power down 2.2%.
Insurance group Brightside (LON:BRT) goes the other way, rising 3.6%, as it revealed a new partnership with trade recommendation website ratedpeople.com.
Brightside will be the sole insurance partner to ratedpeople.com, offering its members commercial vehicle and public liability insurance.