In London on Thursday, the FTSE 100 dropped 1.02 percent to 6,609.4 and the FTSE 250 was 1.1 percent lower to 11,411.6.

House builders and property developers and investors did poorly on both indices.

Investor and developer Brixton (LSE: BXTN) was down 4.42 percent to 345.75p, while Hammerson (LSE: HMSO) was 4.74 percent lower to £10.66.

Quintain Estates & Development (LSE: QED) dropped 4.87 percent to 673.5p and St. Modwen Properties (LSE: SMP) fell 4.9 percent to 480.75p.

Builder and developer Barratt Developments (LSE: BDEV) was down 5.12 percent to 658.5 while Taylor Wimpey (LSE: TW) dropped 5.15 percent to 253.25.

In addition, building materials group Wolseley (LSE: WOS) was 4.57 percent lower to 786p.

The biggest loser on the 100, however, was consumer electronics retailer DSG International (LSE: DSGI), which fell 8.75 percent to 124.1p after it reported that first half profits were hurt by poor sales.

Elsewhere in the retail sector, sporting goods retailer Sports Direct (LSE: SPD) dropped 5.11 percent to 148.5p.

Medical devices manufacturer Smith & Nephew (LSE: SN) turned in the best performance on the 100 with a gain of 2.67 percent to 615p.

Other gainers included beverage cans maker Rexam (LSE: REX), which was up 1.99 percent to 538p and pubs operator Mitchells & Butlers (LSE: MAB) with a gain of 1.58 percent to 641p.

In London on Wednesday, the FTSE 100 added 0.96 percent to 6,677.7 and the FTSE 250 gained 1.51 percent to 11,538.

The big gainer on the 100 was brewer Scottish & Newcastle (LSE: SCTN), which jumped 18.77 percent to 756p after Carlsberg (OMX: CARL A, CARL B) and Heineken (Euronext: HEIA) said they are in talks concerning forming a consortium to make a bid for the UK brewer.

Elsewhere in the sector SAB Miller (LSE: SAB) added 2.3 percent to £14.62.

Among retailers, supermarkets also saw gains.

Tesco (LSE: TSCO) was 1.9 percent higher to 475p, while Wm Morrison (LSE: MRW) gained 4.09 percent to 298.75p.

Elsewhere in the retail sector, sporting goods retailer Sports Direct (LSE: SPD) was up 10.99 percent to 156.5p for the best day on the 250.

Other gainers included food processor Tate & Lyle (LSE: TATE), which was 7.63 percent higher to 455p, and Imperial Tobacco Group (LSE: IMT) with a gain of 4.31 percent to £23.97.

In the banking sector, Northern Rock was back in the losing column dropping 7.16 percent to 207.5p for the worst day on the 100.

Miner Rio Tinto (LSE: RIO) fell 1.47 percent to £43.54 after it said iron production dropped 2 percent in the quarter ending September 30 from the previous quarter.

In the oil sector, BP (LSE: BP; NSYE: BP; TYO: 5051) was 1.2 percent lower to 619.5p.

London’s markets saw gains as well, with the FTSE 100 adding 0.54 percent to 6,535.2 and the FTSE 250 was up 1.15 percent to 11,360.2.

Northern Rock (LSE: NRK) led the 100 with a gain of 11.95 percent to 151.8p on rumors that a US private equity group has arranged funding for a possible takeover.

Alliance & Leicester (LSE: AL) was also higher, adding 7.06 percent to 880p.

But the banking sector was not universally higher.

Merchant bank Close Brothers Group (LSE: CBG) was down 3.47 percent to 794p for the worst day on the 250.

The insurance sector was also mixed.

While Old Mutual (LSE: OML; JSE: OLOML) was up 4.74 percent to 168p, Royal Sun & Alliance (LSE: RSA) was 1.73 percent lower to 153.1p.

Other gainers included house builders Taylor Wimpey (LSE: TW), which added 4.16 percent to 300.75p, and pubs operator Punch Taverns (LSE: PUB) with a gain of 3.87 percent to £10.46.

PartyGaming (LSE: PRTY) was 7.83 percent higher to 31p to lead the 250 on the session.

The worst performance of the day on the 100 came from the telecommunications sector as Vodafone (LSE: VOD; NYSE: VOD; FWB: VOD) dropped 2.51 percent to 171.1p.

Elsewhere in the sector, Cable & Wireless (LSE: CW) was 1.65 percent lower to 185.2p.

Retailers had a difficult day of it.

Sporting goods retailer Sports Direct (LSE: SPD) fell 3.43 percent to 133.75, while Carphone Warehouse (LSE: CPW) was down 1.52 percent to 340.75p and Home Retail (LSE: HOME) was 2.27 percent lower to 398.25p.

London’s equities markets were up significantly on Tuesday.

The FTSE 100 added 2.39 percent to 6,280.7, while the FTSE 250 gained 2.16 percent to 11,212.3.

There were only two losers on the 100.

Consumer electronics retailer DSG International (LSE: DSGI) dropped 0.2 percent to 146.9p.

Pest control and facilities services group Rentokil Initial (LSE: RTO; OTC: RTOKY) had the worst day on the 100 as it fell 0.52 percent to 170.9p.

Meanwhile, sports retailers had a bad day on the 250. Sports Direct (LSE: SPD) was 4.55 percent lower to 131p, while JJB Sports (LSE: SPD) had the worst day on the 250 with a decline of 14.20 percent to 172.25p on a profits warning.

There were gains in the retail sector, however.

Clothing retailer Next (LSE: NXT) added 4.25 percent to £19.40, while food retailer Tesco (LSE: TSCO) was up 4.39 percent to 433.5p.

In the mining sector, BHP Billiton (LSE: BLT; NYSE: BHP; ASX: BHP) gained 4.25 percent to £14.71.

The best performance on the 100 came from the banking sector, where Barclays Bank (LSE: BARC; NYSE: BCS; TYO: 8642) was 4.74 percent higher to 607.5p after it said it had a profitable month in August.

Electronics engineers Aveva Group (LSE: AVV) was the best performer on the 250 with a gain of 6.7 percent to 940p. Property developer Minerva (LSE: MNR) added 6.34 percent to 272.5p.

Equities markets in London saw big losses on Tuesday’s session.

The FTSE 100 fell 1.9 percent to 6,498.7, while the FTSE 250 dropped 1.68 percent to 11,584.

Retailers were lower after sporting good retailer Sports Direct (LSE: SPD) dropped 22.63 percent to 147p after it issued its second profits warning since it’s IPO in February, prompting negative broker comment.

Other retailers seeing declines included GAME Group (LSE: EBQ), which fell 6.86 percent to 193.5p.

Home Retail (LSE: HOME) was 3.28 percent lower to 427.25p, while clothing retailer Next (LSE: NXT) was down 2.66 percent to £18.67 and DIY retailer Kingfisher (LSE: KFG) dropped 2.25 percent to 217.5p.

Electric power generators were lower as well.

British Energy (LSE: BGY) had the worst day on the 100 as it fell 4.5 percent to 509p, while Drax Group (LSE: DRX) was 3.84 percent lower to 700.5p.

Miners were also lower, with Anglo American (LSE: AAL) down 3.81 percent to £31.33 and Lonmin (LSE: LMI) dropping 3.88 percent to £35.90.

Insurer Old Mutual was 3.93 percent lower to 168.7p after talk that South African bank Nedbank (JSE: NED), in which Old Mutual owns a majority stake, might be the target of a takeover.

There were gainers on the day.

Spread betting specialist IG Group Holdings (LSE: IGG) added 9.21 percent to 341p for the best performance of the day on the 250, while consumer products group Reckitt Benckiser (LSE: RB) had the best day on the 100 with a gain of 1.14 percent to £27.48 ahead of its quarterly report.

Other gainers included phone book publisher Yell Group (LSE: YELL), which added 0.69 percent to 472.5p on positive fiscal first quarter results.

Imperial Tobacco (LSE: IMT) gained 0.78 percent to £23.13.