Insurer FP leads gains on FTSE 100

European equities markets were lower Monday as miners and some banks saw declines even as insurers made gains.

The FTSE 100 was 0.2 percent lower to 4,722.2 in London, while the FTSE 250 was down 0.01 percent to 8,421.01.

Insurer Friends Provident Group (LSE: FP) led gainers on the 100 as it added 6.99 percent, while Prudential (LSE: PRU) was also higher, gaining 3.01 percent.

Banks were mostly lower, led by Lloyds Banking Group (LSE: LLOY) with a decline of 4.03 percent, the biggest drop of the day on the 100, while Royal Bank of Scotland (LSE: RBS; NYSE: RBS PRM) was down 3.58 percent.

Miners were lower, led by Fresnillo (LSE: FRES) with a decline of 4.02 percent while Rio Tinto (LSE: RIO) fell 3.24 percent and Xstrata (LSE: XTA) dropped 3.14 percent, but Aquarius Platinum (LSE: AQP) managed to gain 1.22 percent for the only advance in the sector.

Most in the real estate sector were higher, led by Shaftesbury (LSE: SHB) with a gain of 4.2 percent on the 250 while over on the 100 Hammerson (LSE: HMSO) was up 3.11 percent and British Land Co (LSE: BLND) added 2.89 percent.

On the other hand, Daejan Holdings (LSE: DJAN) led decliners in the real estate sector as it dropped 5.22 percent.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was down 0.64 percent to 944.29 while the IBEX fell 0.22 percent to 10,923, the CAC-40 was 0.47 percent lower to 3,504.54 and the Dax dropped 0.75 percent to 5,418.12.

Construction materials group Lafarge (Euronext: LG) added 2.03 percent for the best performance on the CAC-40 while Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext: ALU; NYSE: ALU; TYO: 6687) dropped most during the session there with a decline of 2.88 percent.

Banks were mixed on the Paris index as Credit Agricole (Euronext: ACA) added 0.66 percent but Societe Generale (Euronext: GLE) dropped 1.35 percent.

Over on the Dax, banks did a little better as Commerzbznk (FWB: CBK) led that index with a gain of 1.51 percent and Deutsche Bank (FWB: DBK; NYSE: DB) added 1.13 percent.

Luxury retailers were lower as PPR (Euronext: PP) fell 2.46 percent and LMVH (Euronext: MC) dropped 1.43 percent.

Carmakers were mixed as Volkswagen (FWB: VOW) turned in the worst performance of the day on the Dax as it fell 7.52 percent while Daimler (FWB: DAI; NYSE: DAI) dropped 3.69 percent, but over on the CAC-40 Peugeot (Euronext: UG) was up 0.78 percent.

Most markets in the Asia-Pacific region were higher, but the Shanghai Composite dropped 0.34 percent to 3,249.76 and the Sensex was down 0.99 percent while the Straits Times Index did not report as markets in Singapore were closed in recognition of a public holiday.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 was up 1.08 percent to 10,524.26 while the Topix index added 1.3 percent to 969.24 and the Mothers market gained 1.26 percent to 462.59.

Carmakers and manufacturers of construction machinery were up as exporters generally were helped by a weakening yen.

Mitsubishi Rayon (TYO: 3404) added 19.8 percent on news reports that Mitsubishi Chemical (TYO: 4188), up 4.7 percent on the session, is looking to purchase Japan’s largest manufacturer of acrylic fibers.

Elsewhere in the region, the Kospi added 0.01 percent to 1,576.11 while in Australia the S&P/ASX200 was up 0.11 percent to 4,304.1 and the Sydney Ordinaries gained 0.14 percent to 4,309.2.

In Taiwan, the Taiex was up 0.21 percent to 6,882.87 while the Hang Seng was 2.72 percent higher to 20,929.52 in Hong Kong.

New York markets were lower in early afternoon trade, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.45 percent to 9,328.21 while at the same time the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.64 percent to 1,987.36 and the S&P 500 had dropped 0.53 percent to 1,005.17.

The declines came on profit-taking after gains at the end of last week.

Mortgage lender Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) was 81.08 percent higher at just past 1 p.m. in New York after it reported Friday that the second quarter saw its first quarterly profit in two years.

Story link: Insurer FP leads gains on FTSE 100