Gilts

Gilts fell as investors switched into riskier equities, helped by reassuring results from Intel and Goldman Sachs. The September gilt future fell 54p to £117.25, its lowest close this month. Ten-year gilt yields rose by six basis points to 3.80 per cent. The Bank of England’s regular gilt-buying auction was covered 3.27 times.

Rumour of the day

RSA Insurance rose as much as 5.8p to 123½p in early trading after revived talk of a bid from Generali, of Italy. However, after Generali said that it had no interest in buying RSA and had made no offer, the shares closed up only 2.2p at 119.8p. Talk of a bid by Generali or Allianz was last aired in September. Most analysts say neither has the appetite for such a move.

Deal of the day

SIG, the provider of loft insulation, rose 3½p to 101¾p after one of its suppliers, IKO, a private Canadian maker of roofing products, bought 18.3 million shares, or 3.1 per cent. IKO, which previously has acquired the British companies Ruberoid and Marley Waterproofing, played down any bid intentions for SIG, saying that it believed SIG to be good value.

Bet of the day

Sports Direct International, controlled by Mike Ashley, rose 1p to 82p before results today for its year to the end of April. The company is expected to report strong sales, but there are worries about cashflow and there is talk that it may scrap its dividend to pay off mounting debt. ShortsandLongs.com offers a rolling spread of 81.1p-81.9p.

Tiddler to watch

Nighthawk Energy rose ¼p to 38¼p after an independent estimate put its Buchanan prospect in Missouri and Kansas at 184 million barrels of oil. Daniel Stewart, the broker, said that there was significant further acreage yet to be factored in and reiterated “buy” advice, saying that Nighthawk was on course to prove its oil resources earlier than hoped.

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