Markets: FTSE 100 pushes forward on Wednesday
17:15 - The FTSE 100 (UKX) climbed higher throughout afternoon trading as it built on the morning's gains, bolstered by plenty of positive economic data, both domestically and internationally.
London's leading index finished 109.11 points up at 5790.72.
It was a strong day for financial stocks as Schroders (SDR) and ICAP (IAP) stole the show, finishing 8.5% and 7.7% higher respectively. ARM Holdings (ARM) fell victim to profit-taking as it brought up the rear.
On AIM, the winners' list was headed by mining minnow GMA Resources (GMA), up 31%, while Avia Health Informatics (AVIA) remained the biggest faller, closing 60% down.
On the trading front, Interactive Investor users were crazy about Xcite Energy (XEL) and Tesco (TSCO) while BP (BP.), and banks including Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) and Barclays (BARC), were widely sold.
"The strength of this market at present suggests that traders remain relatively optimistic that some sort of deal between Greece and its creditors can be hammered out. And the figures from Germany and China point to continuing strength from these two nations, whose performance is so crucial to the health of the global economy," commented Ben Critchley, sales trader at IG Index.
He forecast that if the FTSE manages to break above 5800 over the next few days, then an assault on the all-important 6000 level may well be on the cards.
At a glance...
Commodities
Gold: $1,748.07 
WTI crude oil: $98.39 
Currencies
GBP/USD: 1.5854
GBP/EUR: 1.2011
EUR/USD: 1.3202
All changes from 09:00 GMT.
16:50 - US stocks rallied on Wednesday as economic data from China and Europe beat expectations and the US manufacturing picture looked brighter.
The Dow Jones surged 128 points to 12761, while the S&P 500 added 13 points to 1326 and the Nasdaq moved 28 points higher to 2842.
16:34 - Third-quarter revenues at Johnson Matthey (JMAT) jumped 34% on the previous year to £649 million, netting a 22% increase in sales.
The chemicals group said its net debt shrank by £175 million to £442 million, partly driven by a decrease in the amount of working capital needed as platinum prices dropped.
The firm said it expects the picture in the UK and Europe to remain "challenging", but North America to put in a strong performance up to the end of the financial year in March.
16:17 - Lonrho's (LONR) hotel division, Lonrho Hotels, announced it has entered into a decade-long agreement for the 450-room Grand Hotel Kinshasa, formerly the InterContinental Hotel, in the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
With Kinshasa forecast to grow into Africa's largest city by 2025, touting an estimated population of 16.6 million, demand expectations for the five-star hotel and conference venue, once renovated, are strong.
15:58 - Home Retail Group (HOME) on Wednesday announced the appointment of a new managing director for Argos.
John Walden, who will take up the post, was previously executive vice president at Sears and Best Buy and will look to bring into play his prior experience in both internet and direct channel sales.
"He brings with him a wealth of multi-channel retail and technology related business experience at senior levels within a range of both large retail organisations and smaller entrepreneurial enterprises... bringing a valuable, fresh perspective to the future development of Argos," commented Terry Duddy, Home Retail's chief executive officer.
15:39 - Mining giant Rio Tinto (RIO) has taken majority control of South African firm Richards Bay Minerals (RBM) after buying up a stake from fellow mining heavyweight BHP Billiton (BLT).
BHP has agreed to exercise a put option as part of RBM's restructuring in 2009, and this will result in Rio acquiring BHP's 37% stake, doubling Rio's holding in the company to 74%.
The final consideration for the acquisition of the stake in the South African mineral sands mining and smelting operation will be determined through a previously-agreed valuation process.
15:21 - In its fourth-quarter production report, Antofagasta (ANTO) highlighted that gold production in the fourth quarter amounted to 71,800 ounces, compared with 54,300 ounces in the previous quarter, "mainly due to the ramp-up of Esperanza".
Increases at Esperanza and Los Pelambres also resulted in a 13% increase in fourth-quarter copper production.
And despite the increased production, group cash costs for 2011 were 101.9 cents per pound, compared with 104.0 cents per pound in 2010. "[This was] mainly due to the impact of the start-up of Esperanza where net costs were below the group's weighted average," the company said.
Looking ahead, the company expects to produce 700,000 tonnes of copper, 280,000 ounces of gold and 11,000 tonnes of molybdenum in 2012. Cash costs are expected to be approximately 105 cents per pound, net of by-product credits.
Additionally, Antofagasta has entered into a new exploration agreement under the strategic alliance with Eurasian Minerals relating to the Normyran exploration project in Sweden. This is in tandem with exploration opportunities in Portugal with Avrupa Minerals, an agreement with Codelco in relation to exploration in Chile and a strategic alliance with Monax Mining relating to exploration opportunities within South Australia.
15:05 - Expectations of an imminent Greek deal and positive economic news continued to buoy the FTSE 100 (UKX) on Wednesday.
London's leading share index climbed 83 points to 5764.
Greece was "one formal step away" from closing a deal with private bondholders, according to Greek finance minister Evangelos Venizelos.
ICAP (IAP) continued to hold on to the top spot, up more than 6%. ARM Holdings (ARM) was left holding the wooden spoon, down almost 3%.
At a glance...
Commodities
Gold: $1,742.32
WTI crude oil: $99.17
Currencies
GBP/USD: 1.5841
GBP/EUR: 1.2029
EUR/USD: 1.3170
All changes from 09:00 GMT.
14:54 - The Dow Jones posted a triple-digit gain at the open on Wednesday, as positive economic news from both the US and overseas lifted markets across the Pond.
US employers added 170,000 private-sector jobs in January, according to ADP. January manufacturing figures from China, Germany and the UK also boosted investor optimism.
The Dow surged up 106 points to 12739. The S&P 500 increased 10 points to 1323.
The Nasdaq was lifted by 16 points to 2830 as tech stocks rose following expectations of a Facebook initial public offering.
14:43 - Executives at Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) played musical chairs on Wednesday, with a change to the management structure that reduced chief executive António Horta-Osório's number of direct reports to five.
These will be Juan Colombas, (chief risk officer), Tim Tookey (group finance director), Mark Fisher (director of group operations), and Matt Young (group corporate affairs director).
Alison Brittain becomes group director of retail while Truett Tate, group executive director for wholesale, is to retire.
Antonio Lorenzo remains as group director of strategy and wealth and international but will also take responsibility for asset finance from the group's whole business.
14:25 - London Mining (LOND) called January a "landmark month" as it provided investors with an update regarding its Marampa and Colombia operations.
Exports from its Marampa operations in Sierra Leone had commenced. "We are focused on producing 1.5 million tonnes at Marampa in 2012 and are encouraged by the Marampa product specification, which allows us to capture a significant grade-related pricing premium," said chief executive Graeme Hossie.
Additionally, the Colombia operation had started coke production. London Mining expects to reach the targeted production run rate of 200,000 tonnes per annum by the end of the third quarter this year.
14:06 - Segro (SGRO) announced that its UK Logistics joint venture has completed its acquisition of the UK Logistics Fund from Hermes Real Estate and LaSalle.
As part of its strategic review in November 2011 the company announced it intends to expand its portfolio of logistics assets under management. Shares were on positive ground during Wednesday in response to the update.
13:47 - Brewin Dolphin (BRW) announced its interim management statement on Wednesday, with income for the first quarter to 31 December 2011 6.3% lower than the figure to 31 December 2010.
The company emphasised its resilience, especially in the context of the current economic environment and believes that the scale of its operations will assist in weathering current turmoil.
13:29 - United Utilities (UU.) was slightly higher after releasing its interim management statement covering the period since October 2011.
The group remained confident that its financial performance was close to expectations and is set to provide strong results.
United Utilities has also moved up four places, to fifth position out of the 10 water and sewerage companies, based on Ofwat's third-quarter 2011/12 qualitative service incentive mechanism assessment, illustrating how recent initiatives have been delivering results.
13:08 - Imperial Tobacco (IMT) said its current performance is set to meet ambitious expectations for the financial year to October 2012, with strong sales momentum in emerging markets.
Investors responded positively to the interim management statement, increasing their exposure to the company and sending the share price higher.
Read: Imperial Tobacco reports strong sales momentum, for more.
12:49 - Disappointing winter sales meant Tesco's (TSCO) share of the UK grocery market dipped below 30% for the first time in nearly seven years.
Meanwhile, there were red faces at the food retail giant as Reuters reported that UK chief operating officer Bob Robbins has been "moved" from his role, three weeks after it was revealed he sold stock ahead of a profit warning that sent the firm's shares plunging.
For the full story, read: Disappointing week for Tesco.
12:27 - Borders and Southern Petroleum (BOR) spudded exploration well 61/17-1 on 31 January.
The well, which is the first of a two-well exploration programme, is located approximately 140 kilometres south of the Falkland Islands and is designed to test the Darwin East prospect.
Operations are expected to take about 45 days. A further announcement will be made once the well has reached total depth and the wireline logs have been run and their interpretation completed, said the company.
12:00 - Positive corporate and economic news fuelled the FTSE 100 (UKX) in midweek, as it climbed 77 points to 5759.
"Manufacturing figures from China showed that the Asia titan moved back into expansion territory, easing fears that the new workshop of the world was undergoing a slowdown. This good start to the day was followed up by manufacturing data from Germany and the UK, both of which showed improvement for January," said Chris Beauchamp, market analyst at IG Index.
ICAP (IAP) surged up almost 7% as investors ignored the profit warning and focused on the prediction of increased activity for 2012. ARM Holdings (ARM) fell slightly following its rally on Tuesday.
Looking ahead, the US will join in the manufacturing reporting with its own January figures. Also up on the calendar is the ADP employment number for January, widely seen as the precursor to Friday's non-farm payrolls figure.
Finally, social networking giant Facebook is expected to file its initial public offering documents today, which could boost technology stocks.
"US markets are expected to open substantially higher, with the Dow forecast to start up 98 points," added Beauchamp.
At a glance...
Commodities
Gold: $1,746.43
WTI crude oil: $99.20
Currencies
GBP/USD: 1.5780
GBP/EUR: 1.2018
EUR/USD: 1.3133
All changes from 09:00 GMT.
11:46 - The purchasing managers index (PMI) rose to an eight-month high of of 52.1 in January, driven by a sharp increase in the survey's output balance from 50.2 to 55.8.
However, Samuel Tombs, UK economist at Capital Economics, stressed that there were signs this quite rapid growth was unsustainable. "Stocks of finished goods reportedly rose for the first time since April 2008. In addition, the new export orders balance fell back from 53.4 to 51.0, suggesting that overall growth is now largely dependent on domestic demand," he noted.
Howard Archer, chief UK and European economist at HIS Global Insight, agreed. "Domestic demand for manufactured goods is being pressurised by the current, still-serious squeeze on consumers' purchasing power; reduced public spending; and less favourable inventory developments," he commented.
He added that that muted global economic activity, particularly in the eurozone, was limiting manufacturers' export orders, while the eurozone crisis continued to cause major uncertainty for manufacturers.
11:23 - "The scope and potential for the wider Red Rabbit Project continues to grow as we advance our exploration activities in the area," Ariana Resources (AAU) told investors on Wednesday.
The company reiterated that it was focused on providing near-term revenue generation, targeting an average production of 20,000 ounces of gold equivalent from 2013.
Read: Ariana Resources confident of Red Rabbit progress, for the full story.
10:56 - House prices fell 0.2% for a second successive month in January, according to Nationwide.
"[This] indicates that house prices started 2012 under pressure and that is where we expect them to stay during much, if not all, of the year," said Howard Archer, chief UK and European economist at IHS Global Insight.
Archer suspected that low wage growth, a markedly weakening labour market and major concerns over the economic outlook will limit potential buyers and weigh down on house prices. He also noted that a "significant number" of people were still finding it hard to get a mortgage.
He expected house prices to fall 5% in 2012.
10:27 - It was swings and roundabouts during the final quarter of last year for mining giant Eurasion Natural Resources (ENRC).
Parts of the group coped with unexpected maintenance breaks which reduced output of ferro-alloys and iron ore, while other parts of the business enjoyed stellar results.
For more, read: Mixed quarter for Eurasian Natural Resources.
10:00 - Range Resources (RRL) boasted a 490% increase in its proved reserves in Trinidad as it published its quarterly activities report for December 2011.
The upgrade included reserves identified following the completion of engineering work on the secondary recovery potential of the company's Beach Marcelle block in Trinidad.
Read: Range unveils reserves upgrade, for the full story.
09:29 - Inter-dealer broker ICAP (IAP) said profits for the current fiscal year to 31 March will be towards the top end of expectations, which are between £336 million and £358 million, with a median figure of £347.4 million.
In a statement covering trading since 1 October 2011, the group said revenues from its electronic foreign exchange and fixed-income platforms (EBS and BrokerTec) in the final three months of 2011 were 7% lower than in the corresponding quarter of 2010 at $730 billion (£462 billion).
The group's post-trade risk and information business, led by TriOptima, saw strong revenue growth for the last quarter.
Robin Savage, analyst at Collins Stewart maintained his 'hold' position on the stock, saying the statement was in line with its forecasts. Nic Clare at Charles Stanley also retained a 'hold' recommedation.
09:00 - The FTSE 100 (UKX) enjoyed a strong start to Wednesday, tracking a recovery from lows on Wall Street and helped by better-than-expected Chinese manufacturing data.
London's blue-chip index was 33 points ahead at 5714, with ICAP (IAP) flying high on the back of a strong interim statement, while Tuesday's favourite, ARM Holdings (ARM), moved lower.
On AIM, early trading saw shares in healthcare equipment company Mediwatch (MDW) jump 25%, while software firm Avia Health Informatics (AVIA) dropped 77%.
Interactive Investor users were actively trading Xcite Energy (XEL), Orchid Developements (OCH) and Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY).
US markets
Disappointing economic data flattened US markets on Tuesday at the end of their best month since October.
The Dow Jones ended 20 points down at 12632, while the S&P 500 was a shade of a point lower at 1312. Only the Nasdaq ended in positive turf after a strong day for tech stocks. It closed one point higher at 2813.
At a glance...
Asian markets
Nikkei 225: 8809 ( seven)
Hang Seng: 20333 ( 57)
Shanghai Composite: 2268 ( 24)
Commodities
Gold: $1,740.21
WTI crude oil: $98.62
Currencies
GBP/USD: 1.5740
GBP/EUR: 1.2048
EUR/USD: 1.3070
08:00 - The FTSE 100 (UKX) opens at 5681.61.
