Banks and energy shares buoyed by hopes of second bailout for Greece

FTSE 100: 5,990 (+51.12) Mid-250: 12,061 (+101.99) Small Cap: 3,293 (+21.47)BANKS AND energy stocks, buoyed by hopes of a second bailout for Greece, helped Britain's FTSE 100 higher yesterday, but traders remained concerned about buying momentum in the short-term.

The FTSE 100 closed up 51.12 points, or 0.9 per cent, at 5,990, but drifted away from a session high of 6,009.98. The index fell 1.3 per cent in May.

Banks were higher as Europe stepped up efforts to draft a second bailout package for Greece.

Standard Chartered rose 1.4 per cent as Nomura upgraded the bank to “buy”.

But Lloyds retreated 1.4 per cent, with traders citing concerns over the bank placing its bonus scheme under review, potentially driving away the bank’s top talent.

Traders also said there were worries, sparked by newspaper reports, of a return to high-risk mortgage lending, raising fears of the potential for another credit crunch scenario.

The euro climbed to a three-week high against the dollar, as European officials met in Vienna to sketch out options for another bailout package. The weak dollar lifted crude oil prices, which boosted integrated oils, but BG Group fell 0.3 per cent, as Crédit Suisse cut its target price for the firm.

Plumbing supplies firm Wolseley climbed 3.4 per cent, ahead of its trading update today.

Industrial conglomerate Johnson Matthey found support ahead of results tomorrow, rising 4.6 per cent.

“We expect 2011 to be Johnson Matthey’s best year so far,” RBS said in a note, adding it sees margins in the second-half of 2011 at 16.2 percent, up about 40 basis points compared to the first-half of 2011.

Broker support helped lift Experian 3.1 percent, as Credit Suisse raised its rating for the credit checking firm to “outperform” from “neutral”.

Bullish broker comment buoyed motor insurer Admiral Group. The firm’s shares rose 2.1 per cent as Collins Stewart repeated its “buy” rating following last week’s decision by the UK regulator against a total ban on referral fees.

Serco rose 3.5 per cent after the London-based outsourcer agreed to buy Indian private sector outsourcing company Intelenet for up to £385 million (€441 million), which brokers view as expensive but strategically significant. – (Reuters)