FURTHER evidence of the damage to corporate profits wrought by sterling's advance in recent months was one of the factors restraining British stocks yesterday.
Currency hit results from ICI and Vickers, the engineering group. It sent tremors across all the big overseas earners, threatening to outweigh the impact of big gains for financial stocks.
The upshot was that the FTSE-100 index struggled to remain in positive territory after an early move back above the 4,400 level, eventually settling a net 0.8 higher at 4,378.6.
The FTSE Mid-250, heavily laden with the engineering stocks badly affected by the Vickers warning, fell 11.0 to 4,517.4. It was additionally burdened by a profits warning issued by Laura Ashley, the upmarket retailer.
The SmallCap, on the other hand, managed a minor gain at 2,300.8, up 0.2 on the day. The FTSE 100's latest rise extended its sequence of consecutive gains to eight straight sessions.
There was good news for the market's big integrated securities houses with the latest increase in turnover in shares.
Volume finished at 809.7 million shares. It was boosted by another tranche of the LucasVarity share buy back operation along with above average action in Laura Ashley, Asda, National Grid and BT. Bank shares were also heavily traded.
Trading began on a subdued note with market makers chopping their opening levels in the wake of Wall Street's 21 point retreat and the weak performance of US Treasury bonds, which fell around half a point.
Opening losses were mostly reversed following the emergence of some further large scale support for the banks, other financials and the insurances.
The probable interest rate rises in Britain and the US would still present problems for both stock markets, traders insisted.
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