Lamprell, BP lower as energy sector sees declines

Equities markets in Europe were mixed Wednesday, with few indices seeing much movement after early declines which were in some cases made back after US markets did better and new data showed that pending sales of US homes were up 6 percent in April.

The FTSE 100 fell 0.23 percent to 5,151.32 in London, but the FTSE 250 added 0.4 percent to 9,660.38.

The energy sector was mostly lower even though oil prices were slightly higher, with the biggest decline coming from oil and gas construction and engineering group Lamprell (LSE: LAM), which dropped 3.82 percent, while BP (LSE: BP) dropped another 0.06 percent as the US Justice Department opened both civil and criminal investigations into the oil spill at one of its wells in the Gulf of Mexico.

Additionally, Credit Suisse predicted that BP will end up spending up to $37 billion on costs related to the spill, including $23 billion for cleanup and $14 billion in claims.

Pharmaceuticals shares were higher after Jeffries International Ltd issued an upgrade on GlaxoSmithKline (LSE: GSK), which added 1.99 percent on a “buy” recommendation, while Astra Zeneca (LSE: AZN) was up 1.33 percent and Shire plc (LSE: SHP) gained 2.77 percent for the best performance among drug makers.

In a related sector, medical hygiene products distributor Synergy Healthcare (LSE: SYR) was up 7.26 percent on the 250 for the best performance in London on the session.

Caterer Compass Group (LSE: CPG) was up 4.47 percent to lead gains on the 100, while banks topped losers on that index as Royal Bank of Scotland (LSE: RBS) fell 3.55 percent.

Sporting goods retailer Sports Direct International (LSE: SPD) was down 4.08 percent to lead declines on the 250 and in the retail sector, while video games retailer Game Group (LSE: GMG) turned in the best performance in the sector as it added 5.44 percent.

There were only three gainers among miners, led by gold and silver miner Fresnillo (LSE: FRES), which added 1.66 percent.

Food processor Tate & Lyle (LSE: TATE) gained 5.34 percent on an RBS upgrade from “hold” to “buy”.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 0.08 percent to 1,003.58, but the Dax was just 0.07 of a point lower to 5,981.2, the CAC-40 fell 0.05 percent to 3,501.5 and the IBEX dropped 0.34 percent to 9,268.

Markets in the Asia-Pacific region were mixed after Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama resigned just a day after insisting that he would not do so, and as concerns continued both about Europe’s debt problems and about China’s efforts to rein in soaring property prices and what effect those measures might have on the global economy.

The Nikkei 225 was 1.12 percent lower to 9.603.24 in Tokyo, while the Topix index dropped 1.14 percent to 870.05 and the Mothers market fell 0.09 percent to 412.9.

Traders were lower as Mitsubishi Corp (TYO: 8058) fell 3.84 percent and Mitsui & Co (TYO: 8031), which owns a stake in troubled British oil company BP (LSE: BP), was down 8.25 percent.

Electronics giant Sony (TYO: 6758) fell 2.76 percent while video games maker Nintendo (TYO: 7974) was down 2.5 percent.

Other decliners in the region included Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, which was 0.13 percent lower to 19,471.8, while in Australia the S&P/ASX200 fell 0.73 percent to 4,381 and the Sydney Ordinaries dropped 0.74 percent to 4,403.7 and Tawian’s Taiex was down 1.28 percent to 7,195.71.

The Shanghai Composite ended 0.12 percent higher to 2,571.42, but some banks were lower as they attempted to raise more capital.

After a six-day suspension from trading, Industrial Bank Co (SSE: 601166) was down 5.8 percent, while Bank of China (SSE: 601988) dropped 5.1 percent.

In addition, the Straits Times Index was up 0.45 percent to 2,272.57 and India’s Sensex gained 1.02 percent to 16,741.84.

South Korean markets were closed for local elections.

Wall Street was higher in midday trade as the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1.23 percent to 10,147.1, the S&P 500 was up 1.46 percent to 1,086.33 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.51 percent to 2,255.86.

The gains came on new data which showed that pending home sales in the US soared to a six-month high in April as buyers hurried to take advantage of a tax credit, and as energy shares climbed on the news of a US inquiry into BP in regard to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Prices for crude oil were at midday in New York, while metals prices were lower.

Tags: Asia-Pacific equities, commodities, European equities, London equities, Wall Street