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In London equities markets on Tuesday, good news in the pharmaceuticals sector helped the FTSE 100 to gain 0.5 percent to 5,255.8. The FTSE 250 was up as well, by 0.3 percent to 7,722.4. Volume amounted to 2.2 billion shares traded.

AstraZeneca gained 2.1 percent to £25.31 on the news that a study out of the University of California at Los Angeles showed that treatment by a cholesterol-lowering statin in the first 24 hours after a heart attack lowers the risk of mortality by 4 percent.

AstraZeneca’s statin drug, Crestor, currently has a current 6 percent market share for statins in the US, and investors hoped that the study will help the company reach its target of gaining 20 percent of the market.

Also in the pharmaceuticals sector, GlaxoSmithKline gained 1.8 percent to £13.32 on reports that it may be one of the bidders for Boots’s Healthcare International.

Higher crude oil prices sent oil shares up, as BP gained 2 percent to 622p and BG Group was up 2.1 percent to 492p. Steel company Corus added 2.2 percent to 47¼p when Morgan Stanley raised the forecast for the company’s earnings per share this year by 8 percent to 9.6p.

Meanwhile, toy company Character Group gained 15 percent to 57½p on the news that its new Doctor Who toys, including a radio-controlled Dalek, will be in the shops this week.

In the London equities markets, both the FTSE 100 and the FTSE 250 finished both the day and the week on a positive note. The FTSE 100 gained 0.4 percent on the day and 0.9 percent on the week to 5,407.9 at the close of trade on Friday. The FTSE 250 was up 0.4 percent for the day and 0.6 percent for the week to 7,901.6.

Volume was a very high 4.1 billion shares traded, explained by a double witching hour in which both stock options and index futures on the main index expired.

Miners were up on the day as gold reached a 17-year high. BHP Billiton and Anglo Pacific each gained 3.2 percent, to 873½p and 129½p respectively. Rio Tinto was up 3.8 percent on the day and 10 percent on the week to £21.49, while Anglo American advanced by 5.1 percent to £15.54.

Mergers and acquisitions rumors in the aerospace and defence sectors benefited defence group BAE Systems and jet engine maker Rolls-Royce. Rolls-Royce gained 3.4 percent to 370¾p and BAE was up 1.5 percent to 338p.

Among declining stocks, Shire Pharmaceuticals lost 1.5 percent to 685p after a downgrade to “neutral” by UBS.

In the London equities markets on Monday, the FTSE 100 had gained 0.1 percent to 5,366.0 by mid-afternoon, while the FTSE 250 was up by 0.6 percent to 7,894.1.

Once again, speculation of mergers and acquisitions within the utilities sector took the spotlight. Scottish Power gained 2.5 percent to 569½p on a Sunday report that Scottish & Southern Energy could be poised to make a bid for it. S&SE lost 0.1 percent to £10.11 on the talk.

Centrica was up 1.1 percent to 262.85p despite issuing a profit warning on Friday and having Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein reiterate its “sell” rating for its shares as reports surfaced over the weekend that German company RWE might be considering bidding for the company.

Elsewhere, Rentokil Initial dropped 0.3 percent as investors consider the pursuit of the company by businessman Gerry Robinson.

Advertising agency WPP gained 1 percent to 579p as Morgan Stanley upgraded their shares from “equal-weight” to “overweight”.

Cruise ship company Carnival benefited from an assessment by Barrons that the sector might be undervalued due to the increasing popularity of cruises, gaining 2.1 percent to £28.90.

On the London equities markets on Friday, the FTSE 100 gained 0.3 percent to 5,359.3 and the FTSE 250 was up 0.5 percent to 7,851.1. These results capped a week in which the FTSE 100 added 0.6 percent and the FTSE 250 advanced by 0.8 percent.

Most attention during the week had to do with mergers and acquisitions. Industrial gasses specialist BOC Group and rival Linde of Germany were said to be close to a merger deal, keeping BOC close to record high levels at £11.16.

Retailer Tesco lost 0.7 percent to 329¼p on rumors that it was interested in buying Albertson’s, second only to Wal-Mart in the US. Support services company Rentokil, being pursued by Sir Gerry Robinson, lost 0.2 percent to 163¼p.

Elsewhere, housebuilders were up. McCarthy & Stone, the UK’s biggest builder of retirement homes, gained 5.1 percent to 602p on the announcement that this year’s sales would not be down as much as it had earlier estimated. This news helped Westbury up by 2.6 percent to 450½p, while George Wimpey added 2.6 percent to 425¾p.

Paying little attention to the Bank of England monetary policy committee’s decision to leave interest rates where they are, the London equities markets were down slightly on Thursday.

The FTSE 100 dropped 0.6 percent to 5,340.7, while the FTSE 250 fell by 0.6 percent as well, to 7,807.2. Volume stood at 2.7 billion shares traded.

Losers on the day included clothing retailer Next, which lost 1.5 percent to £14.62 on rumors that interim results to be announced next week will not be positive.

Meanwhile, reinsurer Benfield group dropped 0.6 percent to 295p, building supplies group Hanson fell 2.6 percent to 592½p, and MFI Furniture was down 4 percent to 114½p on the admission that core UK orders are down 15 percent from last year at the same time.

Gainers included engineering group FKI, which was up 6.6 percent to 113p after Credit Suisse First Boston said that it was recovering in earnings per share. Shipbuilder VT group gained 4.7 percent to 360p on the possibility of upcoming contracts, fund manager Amvescap advanced by 2.7 percent to 377½p on more rumors of a takeover.

Exel also gained on the day due to rumors of possible bids by Deutsche Post and UPS, adding 1.4 percent to £12.06, while Reuters was up 1.3 percent to 378¼p on the speculation that Google might be interested in buying it.

London equities markets were up on Tuesday even though shares in online gaming companies fell sharply, as utilities saw gains on the strength of a possible bid for Scottish Power. The FTSE 100 gained 0.4 percent to 5,359.2 and the FTSE 250 was up 0.1 percent to 7,795.4.

The online gaming stocks were down amid indications that the popularity of online poker is beginning to slow as recruitment of new players is down and yields per player are lower. Party Gaming was down 33 percent to 105p and BetOnSports lost 13.8 percent to 144p.

Money transfer groups that rely on online gaming for their business were also down. NeTeller fell by 6.9 percent to 841½p, while FireOne was down 11.3 percent to 430p. In addition, Sportingbet, currently in negotiations to merge with Empire Online, declined by 16.2 percent to 311p. The exception in the sector was ubet2win, which added 11.8 percent to 7.12p on the news that it had signed a contract with Victor Chandler International.

Advances in the utilities sector were triggered by a rumored bid for Scottish Power by German company Eon, which raised expectations for the possibility of other mergers. Centrica, which owns British Gas, gained 3.6 percent to 263p.

Water company Kelda was up 2.7 percent to 723½p. Scottish Power and National Grid each added 2.2 percent, to 555¾p and 561p respectively. Electricity groups were also up. International Power gained 2.5 percent to 239½p, while Scottish & Southern Energy was up 1.5 percent to £10.30.

The London equities markets closed down slightly for the day on Friday but was up substantially on the week, mostly on the strength of mergers and acquisitions rumors.

The FTSE 100 ended the day down fractionally to 5,326.8, but gained 1.9 percent over the course of the week. The FTSE 250 also dropped fractionally on the day to, to 7,792.3, but was up by 1.2 percent for the week.

The biggest winner was chemicals company BOC, which gained 4.1 percent to £11.28 on the day after it was rumored that it was in talks with German company Linde, while similar talk that it was also talking to BASF were dismissed. Also in the chemicals sector, ICI gained 1.5 percent to 296¼p.

The Germans, specifically E.ON, were also said to be interested in Scottish Power, which gained 2.5 percent to 525p on the talk.

Pilkington gained 5.2 percent to 139½p on continuing talk that Nippon Sheet Glass, which already owns 20 percent of Pilkington, could purchase the rest of the company, but not everyone was buying the rumors, which some analysts say make the rounds on a regular basis.

In the banking sector, Lloyds TSB gained 1.5 percent to 465½p on the assumption that it is the most logical target if any US or European banks are looking to make a purchase in the UK. Elsewhere in the sector, Royal Bank of Scotland was down 0.8 percent to £16.17.

The London equities exchanges were up on Thursday, with the FTSE 100 seeing a gain of 0.6 percent to 5,328.5 and the FTSE 250 rising by 0.6 as well, to an all-time high of 7,798.5. Trading amounted to a total of 2.9 billion shares.

Part of the gains can be accounted for by a rise of 17.3 percent by logistics group Exel after it confirmed that it had received a bid from Deutsche Post.

At least one analyst anticipated that there would be counter bids for the company, possibly from US company UPS, which has considered bidding for Exel in the past.

Other companies in the transport sector benefited from the speculation, with TDG adding 3.1 percent to 236p and Wincanton gaining 6.2 percent to 288¼p.

Insurers again were down as the damage done by Hurricane Katrina grew more obvious. Wellington Underwriting lost 4.5 percent to 101¾p, Catlin declined by 4.1 percent to 439½p, Amlin was down 2.9 percent to 177p, and Brit Insurance dropped 2.8 percent to 87½p.

On the other hand, companies that stand to benefit from rebuilding after the storm saw their shares gain in value. Aggreko, the temporary power generator, was up by 7.5 percent to 225p and Ashtead gained 7 percent to 130½p. The world’s biggest distributor of plumbing supplies, Wolseley, was up 2.8 percent to £11.59.

London equities markets were up on Wednesday in spite of worries about short and long-term repercussions for the oil infrastructure on the US Gulf Coast due to damages incurred by Hurricane Katrina. The FTSE 100 was up 0.8 percent to 5,296.9 and the FTSE 250 gained 7,749.2 on a volume of 3.1 billion shares traded.

With the rise in oil prices, oil stocks were up despite damage to facilities in the storm zone. Royal Dutch Shell “B” shares gained 2.1 percent to £18.81 despite reports that two of their drilling rigs were adrift in the Gulf of Mexico, ripped loose from their moorings by Katrina.

The mining sector saw gains after Morgan Stanley said that demand from China will mean the peak of the current commodities cycle will not come until into 2006 and predicted that iron ore prices will go up by 5 percent next year. In the sector, Vedanta Resources gained 2.2 percent to 564p, while Anglo American gained 1.8 percent to £14.02.

In the telecommunications sector, mobile phone operator O2 gained 2.3 percent to 153¼p after Morgan Stanley increased the company’s target price to 175p per share, saying that a takeover of the company was still a possibility.

The London equities markets ended both the day Friday and the week mixed as investors worried that interest rates might be about to rise due to an increase in inflation brought on by higher oil prices.

The FTSE 100 closed at 5,228.1 on Friday, down 0.5 percent on the day and 1.6 percent lower for the week. The FTSE 250, however, gained 0.3 percent for the day and 0.5 percent for the week to close at 7,700.5.

Trade volumes were low at only 2 billion shares traded on the day. The slow trade was put to the upcoming bank holiday; traditionally, this is one of the quietest times of year on the exchanges.

With little news of substance, rumors concerning possible takeovers drew extra attention.

On Friday such rumors sent shares in Imperial Tobacco up a bit, rising 0.1 percent to £15.36. All it took to start the rumors were comments from Japan Tobacco that it might be interested in acquiring European rivals.

During the week Centrica, Lloyds TSB, and Rentokil were all the subject of takeover rumors of one sort or another.

Lloyds saw its shares fall in value by 0.1 percent to 457½p on Friday as analysts cast doubt on rumors that US bank Wells Fargo was interested in the bank.

Meanwhile, leisure group Hilton gained 2 percent to 310p as Goldman Sachs raised its pre-tax profits prediction for the company by 2 percent to £420.8 million. Hilton was also helped by an increase in its target price by UBS from 340p to 355p.

In London equities markets on Thursday, the indexes were lower as crude oil prices rose once again.

The FTSE 200 dropped 0.4 percent to 5,255.7 and the FTSE 250 was down by 0.3 percent to 7,679.1 on a volume of 2.5 billion shares traded. Shares in companies that rely heavily on oil products were down.

British Airways fell 1.8 percent to 279 ½ p, while cruise operator Carnival lost 1 percent to £29.40.

Lloyds TSB traded nearly 70 million shares and was up by 4 percent at one point on the day as rumors floated that US bank Wells Fargo would acquire Lloyds, although Wells Fargo has not shown any inclination to acquire European banks. Lloyds ended the day up by 0.9 percent to 458¼p.

Also in the banking sector, the Royal Bank of Scotland lost 1.4 percent to £16.21 after ABN Amro repeated its rating of “reduce” on the bank.

In the leisure sector, Hilton declined by 2.3 percent to 298½p on the news that its Ladbrokes betting shops had sustained a recent series of bad results. In addition, Hilton reported that its hotels have seen falling demand, largely as a result of the July terrorist bombings in London. Still, the company’s interim profits were up.

Steelmaker Corus Group lost 1 percent to 44¼p despite higher interim profits, as it warned that third-quarter profits would be impacted by higher costs for raw materials and lower prices on its products.

The London equities markets were lower on Wednesday as the mining sector
declined and merger rumors swirled around a utility.

The FTSE 100 dropped 0.5 percent to 5,275.2, while the FTSE 250 fell a fraction to 7,704.5 on a volume of 2.6 billion shares traded.

In the mining sector, BHP Billiton lost 3.7 percent to 804p despite reporting record profits for the full year.

Elsewhere in the sector, Rio Tinto lost 3.4 percent to £19.67, Anglo American dropped 2.7 percent to £13.74, and Antofagasta fell by 2.4 percent to £14.56.

Electric and gas utility Centrica was the focus of merger rumors, with several companies said to be interested in acquiring the company.

Most of the talk focused on Norwegian company Norsk Hydro after it admitted to having engaged in talks with Centrica earlier in the year.

Other names that were raised as possible suitors were Russian company Gazprom, Royal Dutch Shell, Gaz de France, and BG Group.

Analysts debated which companies might actually be thinking about buying Centrica and whether there were even any talks going on. Centrica would not comment, but its shares gained 3.8 percent to 252 ¾p.

Trade in the utility was heavy at 106 million shares traded on the day.

The London equity markets were mixed on Tuesday, with the FTSE 100 falling by 0.3 percent at the close to 5,300.2 even as the FTSE 250 added 0.2 percent to end the session at 7,707.4 on a volume of 2.4 billion shares traded.

British Airways lost 1.6 percent to 285 ¼p as analysts began to assess the damages to the air carrier incurred by the caterer’s walkout at Heathrow airport. One analyst said that BA could have its profits for the year cut by as much as £40 million.

Rolls Royce lost 0.1 percent to 341 ¼p after the announcement that it had won a joint contract worth $2.4 billion in conjunction with General Electric to develop new engines for the joint strike fighter, becoming part of the costliest military project in history.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, Acambis gained 4.1 percent to 255p on the announcement that it has successfully concluded phase II trials on a treatment for Japanese Encephalitis.

In the mining sector, Antofagasta added 1.5 percent to £14.91 on the possibility of more merger and acquisition activity involving the Chilean miner in the wake of the death last week of its former chairman and largest shareholder. Another factor in the company’s advance was the raised interim profits forecasts for 2006, up 43 percent to $341 million due to record copper prices.

In what is traditionally a quiet week on the equities markets, the FTSE 100 in London gained 0.1 percent to 5,318.4 on Monday, while the FTSE 250 was up by 0.4 percent to 7,691.7 on a low volume of 1.9 billion shares traded.

The mining sector was up on higher prices for copper. BHP Billiton gained 3.1 percent to 844 ½p on an expectation that its earnings statement, to be released on Wednesday, would be positive and on an increase in its rating by Numis Securities from “hold” to “add”.

Elsewhere in the sector, Antofagasta gained 3 percent to £14.69 and Rio Tinto added 2.9 percent to £20.49.

The decision on Friday by an American jury to hold pharmaceutical company Merck responsible for the death of a man who used its pain killer Vioxx had an effect on the rest of the sector as Shire Pharmaceutical lost 0.9 percent to 675 ½p and GlaxoSmithKline declined by 0.8 percent to £13.35.

Besides the news of the Merck verdict, GSK was also hurt by a report that its drug Paxil has been linked a survey by Oslo University that showed an increase of suicide attempts in adults who use the drug.

In the energy sector, mid-cap gas and oil company Soco International added 11.6 percent to 781p on the announcement that oil has been found at the Te Giac Trang site in Vietnam, in which it holds a 28 percent share.

Equity markets in London finished the day higher on Friday, but were down for the week as a whole. The FTSE 100 ended the day up 0.8 percent at 5,312.6, but was down by 0.6 percent for the week. Meanwhile, the FTSE 250 gained 0.6 percent on the day to close at 7,665.0 but saw an over all loss of 0.5 percent on the week.

The telecommunications sector was mixed. Cable & Wireless, which was the focal point of takeover moves and countermoves, dropped 4.1 percent for the week to 154 ¼p although it began the week at its highest level since July of 2002. Vodafone, on the other hand, was up 4 percent on the week to 154 ¾p, and O2 gained 3 percent on the week to hit an all-time high of 154p. Oil producers and explorers saw gains on the week.

Royal Dutch Shell’s B shares were up 1.4 percent on the week to £18.66, while BP also added 1.4 percent to 632p. Paladin Resources was up 3.6 percent to 281 ½p, Tullow Oil gained 2.8 percent to 205 ½p, while Cairn Energy added 1.8 percent to £17.11.

London equities markets were down on the day Thursday, the sixth straight session of losses, in what one analyst called a correction phase.

The FTSE 100 was down 0.4 percent on the day to 4,269.3 and the FTSE 250 fell 0.5 percent to 7,619.8 on a volume of 2.4 billion shares traded.

The oil sector was down and the telecommunications sector was mixed on the day. In the oil sector, BP was down by 2 percent to 624p, Royal Dutch Shell’s B shares fell 2.3 percent to £18.40, and BG Group declined by 2.6 percent to 494 ¼p.

Telecommunications firms also fell substantially, with Cable & Wireless down by 1.3 percent to 154 ¼p on a downgrade to “underweight” by Lehman Brothers. Mobile phone group O2, however, gained 1.5 percent to 149p on the continued perception that it is a target for takeover.

On the side of the gainers, Shire Pharmaceuticals was up 6.5 percent to 681p on talk that it might make some sort of arrangement with Barr Pharmaceuticals of the US, which wants to make its own version of the drug Adderall. Barr was scheduled to take the case to court in the US next year, but speculation is that the two companies have reached some kind of licensing agreement.

Elsewhere in the pharmaceuticals sector, GlaxoSmithKline was up 1.5 percent to £13.38 on an upgrade from JP Morgan.

In London on Wednesday, the equities markets saw their fifth day in a row of negative figures at the close of trade as the Bank of England released the minutes from the most recent meeting of the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee.

The banking and insurance sectors took the implication of the report, that there would not be another interest rate cut soon, especially badly. Overall, the FTSE 100 lost 0.6 percent to close at 5,292.7, while the FTSE 250 declined by 0.6 percent as well, to 7,654.5 at the close. In banking and insurance, Royal Sun Alliance was down 2.3 percent to 94 ¼p, Barclays lost 2.1 percent to 563p, Aviva declined by 2.4 percent to 621 ½p, and Prudential fell 1.7 percent to 514 ½p.

The telecommunications sector did somewhat better as Vodafone gained 0.7 percent to 151 p, BT added 1.8 percent to 220 ¾p, O2 added 2.8 percent to 146 ¾p, and Colt-Telecom gained 3.7 percent to 62 ½p.

The airline sector was mixed. British Airways fell 2 percent to 385 ¾p as its labor dispute continued. EasyJet, however, was up 1.3 percent to 299p after it announced it would save £10 million for the year as a result of a 10-year maintenance deal with Swiss firm SR Technics worth $1 billion.

Mining companies were down for the second day in a row as copper prices continued to fall. BHP Billiton lost 2.9 percent to 813p, Anglo American declined by 2.8 percent to £14.11, Rio Tinto fell 2.6 percent to £19.85, while Antofagasta dropped 1.8 percent to £14.04.

In London on Tuesday, the FTSE 100 lost 0.4 percent to 5,322.3 and the FTSE 250 was down 0.1 percent to 7,697.0 on a volume of 2.8 billion shares traded.

The biggest loser of the day on the FTSE 100 was Cable and Wireless, on concerns that it is paying too much for Energis, its smaller rival.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the telecommunications sector, O2 lost 2.6 percent to 142 ¾p after it was confirmed that Deutsche Telekom and KPN would not bid for the mobile phone group. It was a surprise to some analysts that O2 was up after the announcement, as speculation on a possible merger had been driving its gains since the beginning of the year.

Logistics group Exel gained 0.9 percent to 995 ½p on rumors that a bid for the company would come soon. Gains had been higher earlier in the day, but slipped back as the talk diminished during the session UPS and Deutsche Post have both been mentioned as being interested in Exel.

Insurer Royal & Sun Alliance also benefited from rumors of a bid on the company, gaining 4 percent to 96 ½p, the best performance on the FTSE 100 on the day.

In London on Monday, the FTSE 100 was down by 1.6 points to 5,344.2 while the FTSE 250 gained 0.8 points to 7,706. Volume was low at 2.1 billion shares as many investors were paying as much attention to cricket as they were to business.

Mergers and acquisitions gained a good bit of attention as well. Mining group Xstrata was up by 6.2 percent to reach an all-time high of £13.52 on the announcement that it has purchased 19.5 percent of Falconbridge, which is the third-largest nickel and zinc company in the world, for $1.7 billion. Also in the mining sector, copper miner Antofagasta gained 2.5 percent to £14.73.

In the telecommunications sector, Cable and Wireless was up 1.2 percent to 163p as it battled the smaller Thus to take control of the privately owned Energis. However, C&W said that it would not increase its bid package under any circumstances.

Also in the telecommunications sector, Vodaphone gained 1.2 percent to 150 ½p after JP Morgan said it was trading at too low a price in comparison to its competitors.

In London on Friday, the FTSE 100 fell 0.2 percent to 5,345.8, but it saw a gain on the week of 0.6 percent. Meanwhile, the FTSE 250 gained 0.1 percent on Friday to close at 7,705.8, notching an 0.3 percent gain on the week. Trade volume for the day reached 2.4 billion shares.

Mobile phone group O2 traded 130 million shares on the day, gaining 2.8 percent to a record high of 149 ½p on rumors that a consortium might offer 175p to 180p per share for the company. Rumors of takeover bids have centered on Dutch group KPN, Telefonica, and Deutsche Telekom, but all the named companies have disavowed the reports.

British Airways lost 0.8 percent to 290p on their need to cancel flights due to a dispute with contractors at Heathrow airport.

Oil shares fell despite continuing advances in the price of crude oil. Royal Dutch Shell “B” shares declined by 1.1 percent to £19.23. Meanwhile, oil exploration company Burren Energy lost 7.5 percent to 756 ½p on the news that it has agreed to reduce its stake in the M’Boundi oil field and exploration rights to the Kouilou permit are in the Congo, trading 10 percent of its 35 percent interest in the concern to SNPC, the state-owned oil company in the Congo, for $35 million. Oriel Securities cut Burren’s rating to “reduce” on the appearance that SNPC was getting the concession at a discount.

Fund manager Schroders gained 2.3 percent to 898.5p on reports that it will raise over $370 million in association with China’s Bank of Communications for the first fund of their joint venture in asset management.

The London equities markets were down on Thursday as insurance companies fell on warnings weak margins. The FTSE 100 fell 0.4 percent to 5,358.6, while the FTSE 250 lost 0.5 percent to 7,695.3 on a volume of 2.7 billion shares traded.

Aviva, the UK’s biggest insurance company, was down by 2 percent to 644p even though it reported results at the high end of expectations, as it issued a warning that margins in the UK life insurance sector were weak and as analysts said that the company was feeling some pressure to increase volume.

Royal & Sun Alliance fell even more, by 2.1 percent, to 92p as profit taking followed interim earnings results that met expectations. Elsewhere in the sector, Prudential lost 2.2 percent to 525p and Legal & General declined by 1.1 percent to 110 ½p.

In other sectors, British Airways was down 1.3 percent to 292 ¼p after it had to suspend check-ins at Heathrow in a dispute between the air carrier and a caterer.

Defense group BAE Systems gained 1 percent to 332p on an upgrade to “buy” from Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein. More than 81 million shares in BAE were traded when Morgan Stanley placed over 30 million shares at 325 per share.

The mobile phone sector was higher after Morgan Stanley advised investors to put their money in Vodafone and O2 rather than in fixed-line company BT Group. O2 gained 0.9 percent to 145 ½p and Vodafone was up 0.5 percent to 147 ¾p.

The London equities markets closed in positive territory on Wednesday as the FTSE 100 gained 0.3 percent to 5,377.5 and the FTSE 250 was up 0.4 percent to 7,734.6 on a volume of 2.8 billion shares traded.

Life assurers saw advances in share value. South Africa-based life assurers Old Mutual gained 2.5 percent to 134p on better-than expected first half results and a forecast that its strong performance will last through the year.

Aviv was up as well, by 2.2 percent to 657p, ahead of its first-half report and on confirmation that Lord Sharman was coming aboard as its new chairman.

Mobile phone company Vodafone gained 0.3 percent on the day to 147p on an assessment by Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein that investors were not taking note of rising valuations of Japanese companies and the improvement in Vodafone’s operations in Japan.

Banks didn’t do as well, as Lloyds TSB lost 1.8 percent to 474p, Royal Bank of Scotland dropped 0.9 percent to £16.05, and HBOS was down 0.7 percent to 903 ½p.

Other FTSE 100 decliners included oil company BP, which lost 0.8 percent to 653 ½p, pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, which was down by 0.7 percent to £25.90, and mining company Rio Tinto, which dropped 0.8 percent to £20.32.

Record label EMI, however, gained 3 percent to 254 ¼p on the news that it is in discussions to purchase New York-based independent label Wind-Up Records, which records Creed and Evanescence. The proposed purchase prices is said to be $125 million.

In London on Tuesday, the FTSE 100 was up by 0.4 percent to 4,363.7, its best effort since late August 2001, while the FTSE 250 was also up 0.4 percent to 7,702.4.

It was the first time that the mid-caps index had broken the 7,700 level. Trading reached a volume of 2.8 billion shares.

The oil sector was up substantially on Monday’s spike in crude oil prices. BP gained 1.5 percent to 659p, Royal Dutch Shell’s “B” shares were up 2.2 percent to £19.09, and Oilexco added 4.2 percent to 161p. Tullow Oil rose 3.8 percent to 207 ½p and Paladin Resources were up 6.7 percent to 293 ½p.

In other energy groups, Cairn Energy added 6.8 percent to £17.20 when UBS raised its rating to “buy” and increased its price target from £15.30 to £19.60. Meanwhile, BG Group gained 3 percent to 514 ½p on rumors that it might be a takeover target in the sights of China’s CNOOC after the Chinese company withdrew from the bidding for US oil company Unocal.

The mining sector was also up on higher commodities prices, especially that of copper. Xstrata gained 1.9 percent to £12.75, while Rio Tinto was up 1.4 percent to £20.48.

In the banking sector, Standard Chartered gained 2.4 percent to £12.40 on upgrades from several brokers following Monday’s positive quarterly report.

The FTSE 100 gained 29.6 points to 5,344.3 and the FTSE 250 lost 6.6 points to 7,673.9 in a mixed day on the London equities markets. Volume was 2.9 billion shares, helped by share placings by several mid-cap companies.

The oil sector was higher on crude oil price gains. BP was up 1.9 percent to 649 ½p. BHP Billiton also gained 1.9 percent to close at 840p.

In the banking sector, Standard Chartered added 7.6 percent to £12.11, an all-time high based on better than predicted interim results, an acquisition of Korea First, a South Korean bank, as well as on speculation that US banking group Citigroup might be interested in bidding for Standard Chartered.

Barclays gained 1 percent to 582p on an upgrade to “buy” and a raised target price of 640p per share from Deutsche Bank. Royal Bank of Scotland, however, lost 1.6 percent to £16.22 on a lowered earnings estimate for 2006 and 2007 by ABN Amro.

Life assurance company Prudential gained 0.5 percent to 524 ¼p after Credit Suisse First Boston increased its price target to 560p.

Meanwhile, telecommunications equipment manufacturer Marconi gained 14.7 percent to 306 ¼p when it said it was involved in talks with Huawei Technologies of China, a privately owned company, on a number of issues.

London’s equities markets were up on Tuesday. The FTSE 100 reached its highest level in 44 months to close at 5,327.5, a gain of 36.7 points on the day. The FTSE 250 was up as well, closing at 7,636.6. 2.6 billion shares were traded on the day.

The FTSE 100’s gains were helped by advances in mining stocks and on the expectation that the Bank of England will lower UK interest rates when its monetary policy committee meets later in the week.

Shares in mining companies were higher on new record high prices for copper brought about by production interruptions in Zambia and Chile that raised the possibility of tight supplies becoming even tighter. BHP Billiton was up 2.5 percent to 810p, Antofagasta gained 1.6 percent to £13.46, Rio Tinto added 2.1 percent to £19.15, and Xstrata rose by 1.7 percent to £12.13.

In the air transportation sector, Ryanair gained 1.8 percent to *6.87 on record high quarterly earnings, even though it raised cautions about results for the rest of the year due to high fuel costs. Fund manager Amvescap lost 1.6 percent to 420p on results that were a bit below predictions.

Other fund managers saw gains on the day after rumors that CI Financial might be readying a hostile takeover of Amvescap. Henderson Group gained 3.1 percent to 67 ½p, Rathbone Brothers was up 1.3 percent to 847 ½p, and Schroders added 1.2 percent to 869 ½p.

In London on Monday the equities markets saw small gains on the day on a fairly weak volume of 2.2 billion shares traded. The FTSE 100 closed the day at 5,290.8, a gain of 8.5 points, while the FTSE 250 added 12.7 points to close at 7,617.8.

Resurgent rumors of a takeover of fund manager Amvescap send its shares up 3.5 percent to 427p, even though a bid wasn’t sure and despite the fact that some believe that even if a bid is made, it was very possible that it would not be successful.

In the banking sector, HSBC gained 0.8 percent to 930 ½p on the strength of a report that its interim profits were up 5 percent to $10.64 billion due to moves into new and emerging markets. In addition, Standard Chartered added 1.2 percent to £11.23, Northern Rock was up 1.3 percent to 825 ½p on an increased target price, and Lloyds TSB gained 1.4 percent to 488 ½p.

Shares in oil companies were up on crude oil prices that were up at least partly on the news of the death of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia. BG Group gained 0.8 percent to 475 ¼p, Royal Dutch Shell’s “B” shares were up 1.6 percent to £18.35, Burren Energy added 3 percent to 788p, and Venture Production rose 6.2 percent to 462p. BP fell, however, by 0.7 percent to 625p.

Retailer Woolworths was up 1.4 percent to 37p on the announcement that it has sold its video and dvd business MVC, which had been a loser for the company.

In London on Thursday, the FTSE 100 gained 1 percent to 5,270.30 and the FTSE 250 was up 0.3 percent to 5,270.30 on a volume 0f 2.9 billion shares traded.

Engine maker Rolls Royce gained 9.6 percent to 342p on record orders and plans to raise its dividend for the first time since 2001, as well as on a number of upgrades by analysts.

Elsewhere in the aerospace sector, BAE Systems gained 2.2 percent to 308 ¼p, Smiths Group was up 1.1 percent to 957 ½p, and Meggitt advanced by 5.1 percent to 310 ½p.

Royal Dutch Shell missed second quarter expectations despite a profit of over $5 billion. It’s “B” shares were down 1.7 percent to £17.59. Telecommunications group BT lost 2.6 percent to 229p on a mixed second quarter report.

In the pharmaceuticals sector, AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, and Shire Pharmaceuticals all issued quarterly reports. On the results, AstraZeneca gained 5.6 percent to £24.80 and GlaxoSmithKline was up 0.9 percent to £13.40, but Shire Pharmaceuticals ended even at 655p.

Among mid-cap stocks, CSR gained 14.3 percent to 512p on a better-than-expected earnings guidance and acquisition of the software component of UbiNetics Holdings.

EasyJet lost 3.1 percent to 247p on a downgrade by ABN Amro, which used the threat of terrorism as one reason for the drop in the budget air carrier’s rating.

In London on Wednesday, the FTSE 100 gained 0.1 percent to 5,263.6, while the FTSE 250 was up 0.8 percent to 7,554.3 on a volume of 3.5 billion shares traded.

Shire Pharmaceuticals gained 1.7 percent to 655p on approval of its acquisition of Transkaryotic Therapies by shareholders of both companies.

Water company Kelda gained 2.1 percent to 710p as it was elevated to the FTSE 100 and upgraded to “buy” by Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, which called Kelda’s efficiency and service the best in the sector. Dresdner also upgraded several other smaller water companies, which helped them see gains on the day as well. Northumbrian Water gained 2.6 percent to 220 ¼p, Pennon was up 1.1 percent to £10.57, and United Utilities added 0.7 percent to 638 ½p.

Reuters was up 1.5 percent to 387 ½p as ABN Amra upgraded the company to “buy” and advised investors to look at more than recent higher restructuring costs.

Tour operator MyTravel group lost 3 percent to 195p on a warning that it had already lost £2 million in cancellations and reparations due to disruptions caused by hurricanes and bombings.