Sector movers: Unilever leads blue chips, but FTSE 100 retreats from previous high

Unilever led gains on the top flight index on Wednesday even as the FTSE 100 index slipped back below 7,100 with concerns over Greece weighing on investor sentiment.

At 16:26 BST, the blue chip index was trading down 35.53 points or 0.50% at 7061.25, well below its recent high of 7119.35 with Unilever leading the consumer goods segment to the top of the performance pile.

Its stock was trading 2.93% higher at 3020p after rising by nearly 4% on the back of posting better-than-expected sales. Unilever said its underlying first-quarter sales were up 2.8% and full-year sales growth would clock in at between 2% and 4%.

A plethora of stocks in the segment traded up feeding off the back of positive vibes, with Hilton Food Group, Cranswick, Kerry Group, Dairy Crest and Associated British Foods all in the green. It meant the headline segment index advanced 2.07% or 571.64 points higher at 28,148.50.

Both tobacco blue chips also posted gains with British American Tobacco up 1.38% and Imperial Tobacco posting a rise of 0.20%, while retail and personal goods stocks were boosted by positive data from Debenhams (up 6.66%).

Additionally, oil and gas related stocks, as well companies in the wider energy spectrum, continued to strengthen as oil benchmarks traded at seasonal highs. At 16:05 BST, the Brent front month futures contract was trading at $63.00 per barrel and WTI up to $55.67, on perceptions the supply glut was easing as US shale production in the Bakken region tails off.

BP's shares were broadly flat, but rivals Shell and BG Group were both in the green, with the former due to take over the latter next year.

Overall positivity filtered through to the bulk of the sector, with notable exceptions such as Ophir and Soco International bucking broader trends alongside the beleaguered Afren which is trying to put recent boardroom and financial problems behind it under in-coming chief executive Alan Linn.

Top five sectors

Personal Goods 28,148.65 +571.79 +2.07%
Tobacco 44,402.61 +301.21 +0.68%
Oil & Gas Producers 7,637.75 +41.22 +0.54%
Construction & Materials 4,929.83 +21.70 +0.44%
Food Producers 8,028.92 +16.25 +0.20%