News

July 25, 2010

That Was The Week That Was ... In London

By John Taylor

In London, the market volatility continued, though the summer slowdown is becoming apparent with most attention now focused on the FTSE 100 stocks. As a result, the FTSE 100 miners gained an average of 9.4 per cent, while the smaller stocks were left trailing with a gain of only 2.4 per cent.

The FTSE 100 miners had a relatively quiet week in terms of news flow. BHP Billiton (LSE: BLT) issued a quarterly production report that was similar the recent one from Rio Tinto in that it appears that most facilities are operating at capacity. However, the company is cautious about near-term prospects in the context of the end of fiscal stimulation in the developed world and attempts by China to slow its growth to a more sustainable rate. BHP Billiton has also been hit by the six month ban on...