London markets were mixed Tuesday, with the FTSE 100 up 0.12 percent to 6.086.1 but the FTSE 250 down 0.6 percent to 10,639.3.

The mixed nature of the indices translated to mixed days within individual sectors.

For example, while property developer Barratt Developments (LSE: BDEV) was the worst performer of the day on the 100 with a drop of 3.25 percent to 909p, British Land (BLND) added 1.42 percent to £12.15.

Likewise among electricity generators.

While International Power (LSE: IPR; NYSE: IPR) added 1.55 percent to 409p, Drax Group (LSE: DRX) fell 2.29 percent to 620p.

Miner BHP Billiton (LSE: BLT; NYSE: BHP; ASX: BHP) had the best day on the 100, adding 2.04 percent to £13.01 after it said it had moved two drilling rigs from deep water in the Gulf of Mexico ahead of Hurricane Dean.

Meanwhile on the 250, JKX Oil & Gas was the best performer with a gain of 7.39 percent to 370.5p.

Other gainers on the day included British Airways (LSE: BAY; NYSE: BAB) at 1.52 percent higher to 401.5p.

In the telecommunications sector, BT Group (LSE: BT.A; NYSE: BT) gained 1.46 percent to 312p.

Avis Europe (LSE: AVE) was up 4.42 percent to £47.25.

Among decliners, pubs operator Punch Taverns (LSE: PUB) was 2.35 percent lower to 976.5p, while Intercontinental Hotels (LSE: IHG; NYSE: IHG) fell 2.33 percent to £10.06.

Human resources specialist Michael Page International (LSE: MPI) dropped 4.22 percent to 419.5p.

The London equities markets fell significantly on Thursday.

The FTSE 100 was 3.15 percent lower on the session, to 6,251.2, while the FTSE 250 dropped 3.35 percent to 11,033.4.

Insurers were in focus, as companies in the sector provided both the best and worst performances on the 100.

On the winning side, Resolution (LSE: REL) added 2.84 percent to 633.5p, while Legal & General (LSE: LGEN) fell 8.24 percent to 138.1p.

The decline for Legal & General came after it reported that margins had fallen to 3.6 percent and that its non-life unit had lost £38 million on household claims due to flooding.

L&G also disappointed when it announced a share buyback program worth £1 billion, much less than had been anticipated by analysts.

Also in the insurance sector, Friends Provident was down 6.65 percent to 181.2p as UBS (NYSE: UBS; SWX: UBSN; TYO: 8657) cut its recommendation from “buy” to “neutral”.

Other sectors seeing declines on the 100 included hotels operators, as Intercontinental Hotels (LSE: IHG; NYSE: IHG) fell 7.34 percent to £11.11.

In the telecommunications sector, Vodafone (LSE: VOD; NYSE: VOD; FWB: VOD) dropped 7.23 percent to 145p.

Airplane engine manufacturer Rolls Royce (LSE: RR) fell 6.46 percent to 496.25p after it reported that profits in the first half were down by 51 percent, affected by the weakness of the US dollar.

The biggest loser on the 250 was retailer GAME group (LSE: EBQ), with a drop of 7.22 percent to 176.75p.

The London markets were higher on Friday, with the FTSE 100 0.83 percent higher to 6,690.1.

The FTSE 250 added 0.55 percent to 11,867.3.

The oil sector was higher on short supplies and continuing worries about the situation in Nigeria.

BP (LSE: BP; NYSE: BP; TYO: 5051) was 1.08 percent higher to 610p, while BG Group (LSE: BG; NYSE: BG) added 1.97 percent to 829p.

Royal Dutch Shell’s (LSE: RDSA, RDSB; NYSE: RDS A, RDS B) A shares gained 2.87 percent to £21.15 after it said that it will begin once again to drill in the Arctic.

Miners also saw gains. Antofagasta (LSE: ANTO) added 2.63 percent to 663.5p, while Xstrata (LSE: XTA) was 3.03 percent higher to £32.66 and Vedanta Resources (LSE: VED) gained 3.15 percent to £17.01.

BHP Billiton (LSE:BLT; ASX: BHP; NYSE: BHP) had the best day on the 100, adding 3.69 percent to £15.16.

Gainers on the 250 included kitchen equipment manufacturer Aga Foodservice (LSE: AGA), which was 7 percent higher to 412.5p after it said it is thinking about selling its commercial division.

Decliners on the 100 included Intercontinental Hotels (LSE: IHG; NYSE: IHG), which was down 1.37 percent to £12.98.

In the business services sector, Experian (LSE: EXPN) dropped 1.58 percent to 623.5p for the worst performance of the day on the 100.

The London markets were higher on Thursday, despite the fact that the FTSE 100 dropped almost 45 points late in the session after early trade on Wall Street was weak. The 100 added 0.1 percent to 6,210.3, while the FTSE 250 gained 0.2 percent to 11,122.9.

Pubs operator Enterprise Inns was the best performer on the 100 for the session. It added 4.3 percent to 658p when Deutsche Bank reconfirmed its “buy” recommendation and 790p target share price. Additionally, Deutsche Bank said that Enterprise would return 50 percent more to shareholders in 2007 than it did in 2006.

InterContinental Hotels Group also did very well with more than 16 million shares changing hands on rumors that Starwood Capital could be interested in a bid. InterContinental gained 3 percent to £12.55.

Wolseley was 1.8 percent higher to £13.23 when Merrill Lynch repeated its “buy” recommendation for the plumbing and building materials group.

Speciality chemicals company ICI dropped 0.2 percent to 478p in spite of rumored activity in the sector. Rumors had it that a consortium of private equity groups are looking to bid on Dow Chemical for the purpose of breaking the company up.

In a short session ahead of the long Christmas weekend, the FTSE 100 added 0.1 percent to 6,190.0. The FTSE 250 was also higher, gaining 0.2 percent to 11,083.5. Volumes were extremely light, with fewer than 1 billion shares changing hands. The 250 was even on the week, while the 100 dropped 1.1 percent from its opening level on Monday.

The retail sector was mixed. Marks & Spencer added 1 percent to 721p, a record high, as Credit Suisse reaffirmed its “outperform” rating. On the other hand, DSG International, owner of Currys and Dixons, dropped 188¾p after Credit Suisse labeled it an underperformer. HMV, the book and music retailer, dropped 3.1 percent to 142¼p on a downgrade from Goldman Sachs after it issued a profit warning earlier in the week.

Premier Foods dropped 5.3 percent to 300p after it said that its yearly profits would only make the low end of predictions. It said the drop was due to the fact that many people had been putting off shopping for Christmas because of mild weather.

Gainers included Centrica, which gained 3 percent to 356p on a target price upgrade from Citigroup, which said that the energy company would benefit from a drop in wholesale gas prices. Also seeing gains was Intercontinental Hotels Group. The Holiday Inn chain operator gained 4.8 percent to £12.17 on bids rumours.

The London equities markets were mixed on Friday and closed out the week lower than they began. The FTSE 100 was 0.01 percent lower on the session and 2.1 points lower on the week to 6,155.2, while the FTSE 250 added 0.1 percent Friday but lost 43.1 points over the week to close at 10,356.5.

Banks were lower, with Lloyds TSB down 1 percent to 562½p, while Northern Rock dropped 1.2 percent to £11.76 on the news that the Office of Fair Trading has recommended that the Payment Protection Insurance market be looked at by the Competition Commission. Both Lloyds and Northern Rock make from 14 to 18 percent of their profits from PPI commissions.

Among other losers, PartyGaming was 7.2 percent lower to 29p on a disappointing trading update, while in the semiconductors sector Wolfson Microelectronics fell to 279p on a profits warning.

Ladbrokes added 2.6 percent to 401¼p and 12 million shares changed hands on rumors that a private equity group would make a bid. Still in the leisure sector, Intercontinental Hotels Group was 2.5 percent higher to 997p.

Amvescap gained 1.6 percent to 614p on positive comments from Deutsche Bank. Meanwhile, media group Pearson was up 0.9 percent to 784½p.