Domestic & General, the provider of warranties on electrical goods, was left in the lurch yesterday when Homeserve, its merger partner, said that it had decided not to bid.

D&G shares fell 45p to £11.87, even though it said that it was still in talks with other potential bidders. Analysts said that the chances of a deal with private equity players looked slim in prevailing credit conditions. Shares in Homeserve, the boiler insurer, have lost 18 per cent since May, when it said that it was considering a D&G takeover. Yesterday they rose 12p to £16.54 in relief: the deal would have cost Homeserve roughly half its £1 billion market value and may have diluted its growth prospects.

UK Commercial Property Trust climbed 4¼p to 89¼p after its statement late on Tuesday that the discount of its shares to net asset value meant that it had to buy back shares. The move is similar to that of F&C Commercial Property Trust, unchanged at 128½p, which is having to hold a shareholder meeting.

Soco International, the energy explorer, slipped 54p to £18.99 after Goldman Sachs put it on its “conviction sell” list. It said that the company would have to strike oil or gas in Vietnam before the end of the year to justify its price. It noted that Dana Petroleum, up 24p to 929p, had a better chance of near-term success. Wellstream Holdings, the oil service company with a unique flexible pipe for deep-sea drilling, was up 27p at 594p, nearly twice its April float price, after buoyant maiden interim results.

Johnston Press lost ¼p to 370¾p after announcing its results. Panmure Gordon lowered its price target, saying that the “rate of ad growth recovery remains painfully slow”.

Melrose Resources lost 57¾p to close at 290¼p after results from the oil and gas explorer were hit by a lack of success in Bulgaria, but Evolution believes that its Egyptian assets could make it a bid target.

Explore Markets

• United States

• Europe

• Japan

• China

• Russia

• The Gulf

• India

• Africa

Times Recommends

• Lies and cover-up at MG Rover exposed by report
• High oil prices push manufacturing costs up
• Primark founder steps down as chief executive