Market report: Monday close

NERVOUSNESS about a US attack on Iraq persuaded many investors to remain on the sidelines, overshadowing the subsequent rise in oil and gold prices.

Dealers said the London market was set for a jittery week as investors weighed the prospects of military action and waited to see whether high-profile names such as British Airways and EMI would survive the imminent reshuffle of the FTSE 100 companies.

The lacklustre approach was highlighted by Shell, down 9 1/2p to 407p, and BP, off 6p at 467p, despite oil prices rising overnight. Brent was trading six cents higher at $28.35 a barrel for much of the day, but analysts said Saudi Arabia's decision not to open its most promising oilfields to Western companies had damaged sentiment. Brent crude ended the day at $28.32, up three cents.

The thought of war also helped nudge up gold prices to fresh six-week highs of $322.40 an ounce. Anglo American added 17p to 772p on the gain, with Rio Tinto rising 7p on its coat tails to 1072p. But Cadbury Schweppes helped offset the benefits of these gains on the Footsie, losing 8p to 462p amid speculation that it is about to commit £3bn to a joint bid with Nestlé; for US chocolate maker Hershey.

The growing threat of war also took its toll on early Wall Street trading. This, and the absence of any positive news from the market heavyweights, left the Footsie to slide 44.8 points to 4062.4.

Conference organiser and publishing house Informa Group led the list of FTSE 250 risers, gaining 13 1/2p to 152 1/2p after saying its full-year profit would meet the market's expectations. This was despite a 28% fall in interim profits to £16.2m.

Market researcher Taylor Nelson Sofres was among other second-liners to enjoy a strong start to the week, rising 11 1/2p to 149 1/2p after reporting an 11% jump in interim pre-tax profits to £19m. It also said top-line growth for the full year would be as strong as that recorded previously.

The good times continued to roll in the building industry, Bovis Homes exceeding expectations with a 45% jump in half-year pre-tax profits to £41.5m. The shares rose 8p to 409p after it said sales reservations were running ahead of the same time last year.

Fellow builder McCarthy & Stone joined in the fun, saying its full-year results would be better than expected. The stock rose 8 1/2p to 313p as the group revealed that it had exceeded sales targets and prices were well ahead of last year's.

But the news was not so good for those holding Forth Ports' shares. They dropped 5p to 791p after the company posted a 5% rise in half-year pre-tax profits to £14.5m and warned that its full-year result would be no better than last year's.

Property leasing group Chelsfield bared the scars inflicted on it by the crash in the IT industry, saying first-half profits had dropped to just £300,000. The stock, which was trading at 379p in April, fell another 18p to 257 1/2p on the news.

Talk of a possible break-up bid by advertising guru Alan Page lifted Cordiant 1p to 50 1/2p, while Geest advanced 8p to 506 1/2p after WestLB Panmure shifted its stance to buy from neutral and raised its price target to 580p from 500p.

Prices and indices in this section are supplied from various sources and calculated at different times and may not always match those listed on the site

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