Miners have been lifted by upbeat comments on the Chinese economy, but Tullow Oil has slumped nearly 8% after announcing a dry well in French Guiana.
The company also said a well in Mozambique had found only a small amount of gas. The news has sent shares in the company - which recently reported oil finds in Kenya - down 85p to £10.30, making it the biggest faller in the leading index. Tullow exploration director Angus McCoss said:
The [French Guiana] well was an ambitious wildcat exploration well which did not encounter hydrocarbons.
Tullow owns 27% of the French Guiana project, with Northern Petroleum, down 6.6% at 30P, holding a 1.25% stake. On Northern, Jamal Orazbayeva at Westhouse said:
The well results are disappointing and will have a negative impact on the share price. The rig will now drill the last well in this exploration program, the GM-ES-5 exploration well, and we look to well results in several months.
Overall the FTSE 100 has edged up 4.67 points to 6627.94, helped by positive news from China where the premier vowed to keep economic growth above 7%. Rebecca O'Keeffe at Interactive Investor said:
Momentum remains positive for equities, which were given a further boost this morning as Premier Li confirmed that the minimum level for growth in China would be 7%, raising the potential prospect of stimulus measures to support the Chinese economy and its bottom line growth target. Commodity companies are the prime beneficiaries of the news, and this sector is leading the UK market higher.
Indeed, Glencore Xstrata is leading the risers in the FTSE 100, up 4.8p at 273.8p, while Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation has climbed 4.1p to 217.2p and Anglo American has added 23.5p to 1428.5p.
But easyJet is down 50p at £13.37 as HSBC cut its recommendation from overweight to neutral and its target price from £15 to £14.50, based on the recent UK heatwave. It said:
easyJet's fourth quarter profitability depends on the company's ability to maximise revenue from last minute bookings. We think demand for holiday flights will be melting as fast the icecreams on Clacton beach in the current heat wave.
