London’s markets were higher Thursday, although the FTSE 100 only managed a gain of 0.01 percent to 6,196.9.

The FTSE 250, meanwhile, added 0.32 percent to 10,945.7.

Property developers and house builders had a bad day on the 100.

House builder Persimmon dropped 2.30 percent to £12.23 after ABN Amro (Euronext: AAB; NYSE: ABN) reduced its target share price from £17.20 to £15.30.

Among developers, British Land (LSE: BLND) fell 2.18 percent to £12.58 while SEGRO (LSE: SGRO) was 2.4 percent lower to 529p.

Hammerson (LSE: HMSO) was the worst performer on the 100, dropping 2.45 percent to £12.75.

However, in a related sector WSP Group (LSE: WSH), which specializes in construction management, engineering, and consulting, added 3.13 percent to 676.5p.

Brewer SABMiller (LSE: SAB) was 2.78 percent higher to £12.94.

Investment manager Schroders (LSE: SDR.L) had the best day on the 100 with a gain of 4.22 percent to £13.34, while its non-voting shares (LSE: SDRt.L) added 3.32 percent to £11.53.

Among banks, Northern Rock (LSE: NRK) was up 3.98 percent to 757p.

Other banks seeing gains included Alliance & Leicester (LSE: AL), which added 0.19 percent to £10.61. Lloyds TSB (LSE: LLOY) gained 0.27 percent to 553.5p, while HBOS (LSE: HBOS) was 2.05 percent higher to 898p.

In London on Monday the FTSE 100 added 0.24 percent to 6,078.7 while the FTSE 250 was 0.16 percent higher to 10,703.8.

Power generators had a good day in London.

Drax Group (LSE: DRX) gained 1.9 percent to 634.5p, while electricity generator British Energy (LSE: BGY) was up 4.58 percent to 451.25p for the best performance on the 100.

Electricity transmitter Scottish & Southern Energy (LSE: SSE) was 1.7 percent higher to £14.44.

Miners also did well after metals prices advanced.

Rio Tinto (LSE: RIO) gained 3.22 percent to £30.78, while Kazakhmys (LSE: KAZ) added 4 percent to £11.70 and BHP Billiton (LSE: BLT; NYSE: BHP; ASX: BHP) was 4.17 percent higher to £12.75.

The aerospace sector was up with BAE Systems (LSE: BA; OTCBB; BAESY) 3.48 percent higher to 431p and Meggitt (LSE: MGGT) adding 4.73 percent to 298.75p.

The best performer on the 250 was care homes operator Southern Cross Healthcare (LSE: SCHE), which gained 6.93 percent to 470.5p.

Insurers were mixed.

Prudential (LSE: PRU; NYSE: PUK) was up 1.1 percent to 657.5p, but Old Mutual (LSE: OML; JSE: OLOML) dropped 2.16 percent to 149.4p.

Property developers and investors were lower on the session.

British Land (LSE: BLND) had the worst day on the 100 as it fell 3.46 percent to £11.98. SEGRO (LSE: SGRO) fell 2.66 percent to 513p, while Daejan Holdings dropped 4.86 percent on the 250 to £33.30.

Publisher Reed Elsevier (LSE: REL; Euronext: REN; NYSE: ENL; NYSE: RUK) dropped 2.61 to 578p.

In London on Wednesday the FTSE 100 added 1.35 percent to 6,393.9, while the FTSE 250 gained 1.96 percent to 11,455.

Electricity generators didn’t do very well on the session.

Drax Group (LSE: DRX) was down 1.89 percent to 649p, while British Energy Group (LSE: BGY) dropped 2.22 percent to 474.5p.

But engineering groups had the worst day on both the 100 and the 250.

On the 100 Smith’s Group (LSE: SMIN) fell 2.8 percent to £10.08 after it issued a flat profits outlook, blaming the US dollar on since it receives at least half of its revenues from the United States.

Meanwhile on the 250, construction engineers Keller Group (LSE: KLR) dropped 7.23 percent to 904p.

Property investment group Liberty International (LSE: LII) had the best day on the 100, adding 6.5 percent to £11.30, while SEGRO (LSE: SGRO) gained 5.9 percent to 565p.

On the 250, property investment group Minerva (LSE: MNR) was up 10.69 percent to 308p.

Unite Group (LSE: UTG), which builds, manages, and rents housing for students, was 9.4 percent higher to 419p.

Automobile insurer Admiral Group (LSE: ADM) had its best one-day advance since it began trading as it added 10.26 percent to 940p.

In financial services sectors, Alliance & Leicester (LSE: AL) was 6.03 percent higher to £11.07, while broker ICAP (LSE: IAP) gained 6.04 percent to 500p.

The markets were mixed in London on Monday, with the FTSE 100 adding 0.6 percent to 6,624.4 but the FTSE 250 falling 0.38 percent to 11,775.

Insurer Friends Provident (LSE: FP) was the best performer on the 100 as it added 7.83 percent to 201p after it announced that it is in merger talks with Resolution (LSE: RSL).

Elsewhere in the insurance sector, Legal and General (LSE: LGEN) was 2.71 percent higher to 155.3p.

Barclay’s Bank (LSE: BARC; NYSE: BCS; TYO: 8642) gained 3.01 percent to 735p on the news that China will by a stake in the bank so that it can increase its bid for ABN Amro (Euronext: AAB; NYSE: ABN).

The insurance sector grabbed the top spot on the 250 on the session as well, with special risk insurer Beazley Group (LSE: BEZ) up 5.95 percent to 169.25p.

Retailer GAME Group (LSE: EBQ) also saw gains, adding 3.4 percent to 205.25p.

The property investment sector had a rough day.

Liberty International (LSE: LII) fell 1.7 percent to £11, while SEGRO (LSE: SLOU) - formerly Slough Estates - also dropped 1.7 percent, to 578p.

British Land (LSE: BLND) was the worst performer on the 100, falling 3.1 percent to £13.14.

Meanwhile, house builder Persimmon (LSE: PSN) was 1.69 percent lower to £11.64.

Lifting equipment manufacturer FKI (LSE: FKI) had the worst day on the 250 as it dropped 8.27 percent to 113.75p.

Property investment groups did no better on the 250 than they did on the 100, as Shaftesbury (LSE: SHB) was 3.99 percent lower to 577p and Workspace Group (LSE: WKP) fell 5.23 percent to 362.5p.

The FTSE 100 dropped 0.28 percent to 6,697.7 in London on Monday, while the FTSE 250 was 0.05 percent lower to 11,917.3.

The mining and oil sectors were lower in London.

Platinum miner Lonmin (LSE: LMI) dropped 6.85 percent to £39.85 for the worst performance of the session on the FTSE 100 after it issued a disappointing trading statement, saying that sales will be lower for the next year.

The announcement prompted a downgrade from Citigroup (NYSE: C).

Xstrata (LSE: XTA) was also lower, falling 1.78 percent to £33.61.

In the oil sector, Royal Dutch Shell’s (LSE: RDSA, RDSB; NYSE: RDS.A, RDS.B) A shares were 1.59 percent lower to £20.40.

BG Group (LSE: BG; NSYE: BG) was also lower, dropping 2.34 percent to 857p.

On the FTSE 250, Premier Oil (LSE: PMO) fell 2.57 percent to £11.75, while Burren Energy (LSE: BUR) was down 2.79 percent to 853.5p.

Back on the 100, SEGRO (LSE: SLOU), the rebrand of property development group Slough Estates, fell 2.04 percent to 599p.

Top gainers on the 100 covered several sectors, with bank Alliance & Leicester (LSE: AL) doing the best as it added 2.49 percent to £11.52.

Publisher Reed Elsevier (LSE: REL; Euronext: REN; NSYE: ENL; NYSE: RUK) was 1.66 percent higher to 675p, while in the pharmaceuticals sector, GlaxoSmithKline gained 1.63 percent to £13.10 on an upgrade from “underweight” to “neutral” from JP Morgan (NYSE: JPM; TYO: 8634).