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Market movers - Royal Bank of Scotland, IAG, Strategic Minerals, Oilex, SuperGroup and Range

Last updated: 04:25 31 Oct 2014 EDT, First published: 05:25 31 Oct 2014 EDT

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Footsie was 63 points to the good at 6,527 an hour after the open with Royal Bank of Scotland (LON:RBS) leading the charge.

Shares in the state-backed lender initially opened 3.5% higher on Friday after the bank's profits hit £1.27bn in the third quarter of the year.

An impressive rise for the firm when you compare the figure to the £1bn made in the second quarter and a £634m loss in the same period last year. 

It also became the latest bank set aside funds (£400mln to be exact) for potential costs of currency market investigations.

Shares in British Airways owner IAG (LON:IAG) also took off today, rising as much as 3.15%, after the firm reported a 30% lift in third quarter profits and raised full-year profit guidance. 

London’s benchmark index started off on a firm footing. Only three Footsie members were trading down at 8.40am following strong sessions in Asia and the US. 

The US economy expanded at an annual rate of 3.5% in the last quarter, surpassing estimates for 3.1% growth, and at the same time unemployment claims over the past month were the lowest for more than 14 years.

“The pickup in Q3 US GDP yesterday certainly stopped the bears in their tracks and some surprise easing from the BoJ overnight has got the bulls ready to stampede out of the gates this morning,” said Capital Spreads dealer Jonathan Sudaria.

“Just as the Fed takes away the punch bowl, the BoJ has turned up with a crate of sake.” 

Strategic Minerals (LON:SML) was among the top AIM risers, up 20% this morning, as it revealed a way it might boost the value of the of iron ore at the Cobre stockpile in New Mexico as it said it is in talks to acquire further projects.

Meanwhile Minco (LON:MIO) shares rocketed 60% on Friday. Earlier this week the firm confirmed a significant sulphide discovery was confirmed in Canada.

Range Resources (LON:RRL) rose 9.8% as its chief executive Rory Scott Russell reported production growth, and consequently increased revenue from the firm’s core assets in Trinidad, which holds over 19 million barrels of proved reserves.

Shares in oil and gas investment company TXO (LON:TXO) rose nearly 14% on news of a favourable verdict from a court case in involving Empire Energy in New York.

Oilex (LON:OEX) shares were trading up 7.8% after the company announced ‘significant progress in achieving the proof of concept objectives for Cambay-77H in India.

At the other end of the chart SuperGroup (LON:SGP) shares fell sharply, down 9.6%, after a trading update revealed sales in its autumn/winter range (particularly outerwear a major part of the Superdry product mix) slumped. 

ULS Technology (LON:ULS), a provider of business-to-business platforms for UK financial firms, was the major faller, down a hefty 22%. The firm said underlying operating profit for the full year is expected to show good growth year-on-year, but nevertheless to be below management's initial expectations.

Meanwhile UK-listed Goldplat’s (LON:GDP) announcement that it remains on track to report an operating profit for its financial year wasn’t enough to stop shares dropping 3.5%.


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