Markets edge higher in early trade on Friday as banks gain

Markets in London edge higher in early trade on Friday as banks gain

Tweet

Print Share

 

Also In The News

Christian Horner says Sebastien Vettel "the complete driver"
By Adam Leveridge Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner says Sebastien Vettel is now "the complete driver" and has backed the young German for the championship in 2010.

• Felipe Massa looking for large Ferrari points haul in Bahrain
• Take That singer Mark Owen 'deeply sorry' after infidelity
• Norway's 'Doomsday seed vault' becomes world's largest

 

Friday, 12, Mar 2010 09:31

The FTSE 100, the UK's leading shares index, inched higher in early trade on Friday as banks gained.

The markets in the city were up by 0.04 per cent, at 2.23 points to 5,619.49, after closing down on Thursday evening.

By 09:10 GMT British Airways (BA) - which is due to hear later today from the Unite union when cabin crew will strike - was leading the blue-chip gainers, up by 2.73 per cent.

Banks were among the early risers on the index, with Lloyds Banking Group adding 2.56 per cent, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) adding 2.52 per cent and Barclays PLC adding 1.24 per cent in early trade.

Dragging on the FTSE 100 was Xstrata, which shed 0.88 per cent, while HSBC Holdings failed to follow its fellow banks by losing 0.58 per cent on Friday morning. Yesterday the bank admitted that about 24,000 clients of HSBC's private banking operation in Switzerland had personal details stolen by a former employee.