Reuters: Hot Stocks: UK stocks tick higher, consolidating week's gains

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UK stocks tick higher, consolidating week's gains Nov 23rd 2012, 10:04 Fri Nov 23, 2012 5:04am EST * FTSE 100 up 0.1 pct, set to match best week this year * ENRC boosted by changes to chairman's role * Volumes light; U.S. markets only open for half-day By Jon Hopkins LONDON, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Britain's top share index ticked higher in early trade on Friday, consolidating strong gains seen already this week, although investors stayed cautious on some key macro factors. The FTSE 100 index is up almost 3.3 percent this week, on track to at least match the year's best week so far, recorded in May. Sectors perceived as defensive, such as tobacco, drugs and drinks groups, were the top blue chip performers, with brewer SABMiller again in demand after strong first-half results on Thursday. It gained another 0.8 percent on a raft of positive broker comment. Nomura upgraded its rating for SABMiller to "neutral" from "reduce" after raising its target price for the stock, with JP Morgan, Deutsche Bank, and Societe Generale also hiking targets. "It's all pretty flat really after Thursday's gains," Henk Potts, market strategist at Barclays Wealth, said. "Investors still remain nervous regarding the fiscal challenges in the U.S., Greece debt relief negotiations and the 2013 EU Budget, so against the background of thin volumes after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, markets are just drifting." A senior Greek government official said on Friday that Athens' international lenders have agreed on new measures to cut its debt pile further, but it still has to fill a 10 billion euro gap to gain the IMF's approval. Lenders who failed earlier this week to agree how to get Greece's debt down to a sustainable level will have a third go at resolving the problem on Monday. Investors were also focused on a summit of EU leaders to discuss a new seven-year budget for the 27 nation bloc. European Council President Herman Van Rompuy adjourned the summit early on Friday to allow time for heads of state and government to study a revised set of proposals, officials said. Potts remains optimistic on the outlook for stocks, however. "Generally, with the 2012 year-end fast approaching, I think the fundamentals remain in place for a good year for equities in 2013, with outperformance versus government bonds set to continue," he said. At 0929 GMT, the FTSE 100 index was up 4.79 points, or 0.1 percent, at 5,795,82, having jumped 0.7 percent higher on Thursday driven by strength in miners and energy stocks after solid manufacturing data from China. After the previous session's gains, profit-taking in commodity stocks was the main drag on UK blue chips. However, miner ENRC bucked the sector trend, adding 0.4 percent. ENRC gained as it said it has bolstered the role of its chairman, Mehmet Dalman, as the former banker grapples with internal probes, a corporate governance reputation tainted by boardroom battles and lagging shares. Early volume in ENRC shares was among the biggest on the FTSE 100 index, at 20 percent of its 90-day daily average, with total blue chip volume very thin, at just 6 percent of the 90-day daily average. A half-day closure in the U.S. market on Friday following Thursday's Thanksgiving holiday is likely to keep trading in London light. Technical analysis of the market was also cautious. "Short-term traders should watch carefully the trading action inside of 5,763.70 to 5,801.01," James A.Hyerczyk, analyst at Autochartist said. "If there is no follow-through rally or if the market starts higher and finishes lower then look for the start of a short-term correction. If a near-term top is forming, the FTSE may break back to 5,703.31 before new buyers step in." (Editing by Catherine Evans) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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