Britvic and Debenhams provided some cheer to investors this morning, as the market drifted lower on expectations that there may not, after all, be a deal to save the euro.
Debenhams said its headline profit was up 10% to £166m in the year to September 3, despite a like-for-like sales decline, excluding VAT.
The profit figure was ahead of analysts' average forecasts of £162m. The company is paying a 3p dividend after paying nothing last year.
Debenham's 2009 acquisition, Danish retailer Magasin du Nord, was a star performer - with profits more than doubling.
Debenhams shares were up almost 6% at 9:45, to 66.1p.
Britvic meanwhile said full year revenues were up almost 15% - with prices rising too. Its GB and International average realised price rose 2.1%.
The shares rose 5% this morning to reach 324p.
Spirit was up 6% after confirming that chief executive Ian Dyson is stepping down, to be succeeded by deputy chief executive Mike Tye.
It was not all to do with Dyson's departure - the company's results showed a 17% rise in full-year pre-tax profits.
Punch, from which it was demerged, saw full-year profits fall by contrast - its shares rising 2.4% even so.
The market generally was drifting, 50 points lower on suggestions yesterday from French President Nicholas Sarkozy's camp that talks on a euro deal were "stuck" in some way.
Retailers dominated the FTSE 100 risers - with Next, Tesco and Marks & Spencer all up by around 0.5%, perhaps benefitting from Debenhams' better-than-expected numbers.
The mining groups were suffering amid another fall in commodity prices - Brent Crude was a fraction lower at $108.3 a barrel on the day.
Pace was sharply down after saying that sever flooding had affected a supplier in Thailand. The shares fell 15% at one stage but recovered, 6.5% down at 9:45 at 87p.
Skyepharma fell 13% after it emerged that it may take longer than expected for the company to get European approval for asthma therapy Flutiform.
