By Simon Kennedy
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- British stocks edged lower Wednesday as
investors nervously watched the situation in Ireland and as the
Bank of England revealed that its rate-setting committee remained
split over the direction of monetary policy.
The FTSE 100 index slipped 0.2% to 5,670.68, while other
European markets moved modestly higher after euro-zone finance
ministers said a team of officials from the European Central Bank
and International Monetary Fund would consult with Ireland over the
country's debt crisis.
Worries over Ireland, along with fears of a possible rate hike
in China, knocked about 2.4% off the U.K.'s benchmark index in the
previous session.
U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne said Wednesday
that the country "stands ready" to participate in a bailout of
Ireland. Osborne said contributing to a bailout would help ensure
the stability of the banking system. .
In other economic news, the Bank of England said its
rate-setting committee was split three ways at the most recent
meeting in November.
One member called for an increase in the size of the central
bank's asset-repurchase program, while another wanted policy to be
tightened with a quarter-point rate hike. The other seven members
voted to leave rates and the quantitative-easing program
unchanged.
Among shares on the move, Experian was the biggest gainer on the
main index, climbing 6.2% after the company reported a 5.6% rise in
fiscal first-half profit and lifted its dividend by 29%.
Drug company GlaxoSmithKline PLC (GSK) was another strong
performer. The firm's stock rose 2.2% after an advisory panel
recommended that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approve
Benlysta, a lupus drug developed by Glaxo and Human Genome Sciences
Inc. (HGSI).
On the downside, shares in Centrica PLC dropped 1.2% after a
trading update. The gas utility said operating profit for the year
should be slightly ahead of the consensus forecast, but added that
this would be offset by higher-than-expected interest and tax
charges.
Outside the main index, shares in Northern Foods PLC and
Ireland's Greencore Group jumped 24% and 29%, respectively, after
the pair agreed to merge.
Shareholders in each of the two convenience-food companies will
hold about 50% of the combined business, which will be rebranded as
Essenta Foods. Within three years, the merger will also cut costs
by around 40 million pounds ($64 million) a year, the companies
said.
Share moves in the financial sector were relatively modest
compared with recent sessions, though hedge-fund manager Man Group
PLC dropped 2.1% after reporting that the net asset value of its
flagship AHL fund had fallen 4.1% over the course of a week.