London midday: Stocks in the red as ECB rate decision edges closer

UK stocks were starting to come off their earlier losses around midday, having fallen sharply early on ahead of the European Central Bank (ECB) rate decision.

At the midday point, the FTSE was 13.95 points lower at 6,543.57.

Although the ECB is not expected to adjust its current rate, there was speculation that Thursday could see the announcement of a full quantitative easing (QE) programme. The announcement is due to be announced at 12:45 BST.

The ECB has come under pressure in recent times to boost stimulus measures in a bid to tackle weak economic recovery and low levels of inflation.

Gael Gunbu at Deutsche Bank said that any changes would be "closely watched as pressure has continued to build on the ECB to bring in full public QE".

"There will no doubt be questions about whether government bond purchases will be used if the ECB can't increase their balance sheet by the trillion of Euros that Draghi has made a policy aspiration,” he continued.

BoE calls for great powers to curb mortgages

The Bank of England (BoE) has called for new powers to curb mortgage lending amid concerns over the housing market.

The central bank has asked the government for permission to enforce a limit on the loan-to-value ratio of their mortgages to prevent the risk of a destabilising housing bubble.

It would allow the BoE to cap the amount home buyers can borrow relative to the value of the property they want to buy.

Xaar shares tumble as Hargreaves climbs on broker upgrade

Shares in print-head maker Xaar tumbled after it again warned on profits for the current and next full year as a further slowdown in Chinese tile production activity has hit demand for its products. A third-quarter update explained that sales for 2014 are now expected to be 5-10% below the recent profit guidance of £115-125m, with profits likely to be "materially" lower, house broker N+1 Singer explained, due to the company's high operating leverage. Total group revenue for 2015 is now also expected be below £100m, although visibility remains low.

The news prompted FinnCap to place both its target price and its 'hold' recommendation under review.

Readacross from its US peer United Rentals sent shares in Ashtead into the red, while Babcock also slipped lower.

On the upside, Numis drove shares in Hargreaves Lansdown higher after upgrading its rating on the stock to 'buy'.

Supermarkets put in modest gains following a sharp drop the previous day.

Virgin Money has announced its intention to list on the London Stock Exchange, making it the fourth challenger bank to do so this year.

Market Movers
techMARK 2,776.72 -0.42%
FTSE 100 6,544.43 -0.20%
FTSE 250 15,138.17 -0.48%

FTSE 100 - Risers
Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 162.60p +1.69%
Tesco (TSCO) 183.00p +1.55%
Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 942.00p +1.40%
Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 2,861.00p +1.27%
Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 236.50p +1.07%
Prudential (PRU) 1,370.50p +0.99%
Mondi (MNDI) 1,021.00p +0.89%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 707.00p +0.71%
Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 1,336.00p +0.68%
Dixons Carphone (DC.) 366.90p +0.49%

FTSE 100 - Fallers
Ashtead Group (AHT) 977.50p -4.54%
Babcock International Group (BAB) 1,055.00p -2.77%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,443.00p -2.24%
BG Group (BG.) 1,072.00p -1.92%
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 2,296.00p -1.63%
Direct Line Insurance Group (DLG) 287.40p -1.51%
BAE Systems (BA.) 456.30p -1.49%
3i Group (III) 371.90p -1.38%
Whitbread (WTB) 4,093.00p -1.16%
Sports Direct International (SPD) 605.50p -1.14%

FTSE 250 - Risers
African Barrick Gold (ABG) 218.80p +4.64%
Ophir Energy (OPHR) 226.20p +2.40%
Carillion (CLLN) 310.70p +2.10%
Fidessa Group (FDSA) 2,285.00p +2.05%
Croda International (CRDA) 2,027.00p +1.86%
Greencore Group (GNC) 233.50p +1.70%
Ted Baker (TED) 1,892.00p +1.61%
Rank Group (RNK) 163.30p +1.43%
Card Factory (CARD) 237.20p +1.37%
Stock Spirits Group (STCK) 297.90p +1.33%

FTSE 250 - Fallers
Electrocomponents (ECM) 211.20p -3.91%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 125.20p -3.84%
Centamin (DI) (CEY) 58.90p -3.44%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 101.60p -3.33%
Just Retirement Group (JRG) 121.00p -2.97%
Premier Oil (PMO) 315.30p -2.90%
EnQuest (ENQ) 104.80p -2.78%
Kazakhmys (KAZ) 252.90p -2.77%
Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) 357.40p -2.77%
Saga (SAGA) 163.30p -2.74%