By Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch
MADRID (MarketWatch) -- The U.K.'s benchmark stock index dropped
on Tuesday, led lower by the mining sector, while Lloyds Banking
Group PLC and BP PLC were among the few gainers following their
earnings reports.
The FTSE 100 index fell 0.4% to end at 6,430.12, but posted a
gain of 0.3% for April.
London stocks moved a leg lower after a gauge of manufacturing
in the Chicago area slid to a more-than-three-year low in April,
while the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index rose 0.3% in
February.
On the upside in London, shares of Lloyds (LYG) rose 1.6% after
the bank said it swung to a hefty profit in the first quarter of
the year, with impairment charges dropping off and no need to put
money aside to cover the costs to reimburse customers wrongfully
sold financial products.
Shares of Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (RBS) rose 4.2%. The
bank will report first-quarter results on Friday.
However, shares of heavyweight Standard Chartered PLC dropped 1.2%.
Shares of Centrica PLC fell 2.3% after the utility was cut to
underperform from neutral by Credit Suisse, which said trading
conditions for its British Gas unit have deteriorated. It noted
that Centrica shares have performed well in the last 18 months.
Shares of heavyweight Unilever PLC fell 0.7% after the company
said it would raise its stake in Hindustan Unilever, its India
subsidiary, from 52.48% to up to 75%, spending around 4.1 billion
euros ($5.4 billion).
Shares of BP (BP) rose 2.1% after the oil major posted a
more-than-threefold rise in profit for the first quarter, driven by
proceeds from the sale of its Russian joint venture TNK-BP that
offset a fall in oil and gas production and down time at a key
Indiana refinery.
Many heavily weighted mining stocks fell. Poor sentiment has
plagued the sector for months, driven by weak Chinese data and
oversupply. BHP Billiton PLC (BHP) fell 2.2%, while Rio Tinto PLC
(RIO) dropped 1.8%. Shares of Anglo American PLC fell 2.7%.
Away from the main index, miner Lonmin PLC fell 5.7% after an
incident shut down its Number Two furnace. It said it expects
repairs will take 30 to 40 days. The company had just shut down its
Number One furnace for a planned upgrade. (Read more
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/lonmin-shuts-down-furnace-after-incident-2013-04-30.)
Shares of Invensys PLC rose 5.5% after Société Générale upgraded
the firm to buy from hold, citing an improved investment profile
and potential upside from merger and acquisition activity.
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