After another sharp fall on Tuesday, the London equities markets saw significant gains on Wednesday as the FTSE 100 added 1.3 percent to 5,723.8, getting back almost half of yesterday’s decline. The FTSE 250 was up 0.7 percent to 8,298.2. Despite the day’s gains, however, the 100 dropped 5 percent in May, while the 250 lost 5.9 percent on the month. It was the largest monthly loss for both indexes since January 2003.

In the mining sector, Xstrata added 5.4 percent to £21.30 in heavy trading, as £272 million worth of its stock was traded during the final auction period of the day. The miner will be joining the MSCI index beginning on Thursday.

MyTravel also traded at a higher volume than usual as rumors circulated that it could be targeted for takeover by a European company. The tour operator’s shares were up 3.5 percent to 238p. MyTravel’s half-year earnings report is due June 15, and talk that it may have incurred tax losses in the UK helped fuel the rumors.

In the insurance sector, life assurer Friends Provident added 2.4 percent to 177½p on an upgrade from “underperform” to “outperform” from Credit Suisse.

William Morrison gained 0.26 percent to 195¾p on rumors that an Icelandic investment group had been buying up shares in the supermarket operator.

PartyGaming added 3.2 percent to 130p on the day. Like Xstrata, it will also be joining the MSCI index on Thursday.

London’s equities markets came back from Monday’s holiday to major losses. The FTSE 100 declined by 2.4 percent to 5,652.0 while the FTSE 250 lost 2.9 percent to 9,235.5.

Shares in companies that depend on the US dollar for a large part of their earnings were especially vulnerable as the greenback continued to weaken. Among those losers were asset manager Amvescap, which declined by 4.2 percent to 408p; plumbers Wolseley, down 5 percent to £12.02; and building materials group Hanson, which lost 5.6 percent to 642p.

The insurance sector also saw losses. Prudential was down 4.3 percent to 576½p, while Old Mutual declined by 4.9 percent to 163½p.

Miners were down on the day even though metals prices were relatively stable. Copper miner Kazakhmys had the worst of it, dropping 4.6 percent to £10.85.

Gainers on the day included airport operators BAA, which added 6.4 percent to 873p after it said it had rejected a 900p per share offer from Spanish construction company Grupo Ferrovial. Amid mid-cap gainers was EMI Group, which was up 1.3 percent to 273¼p on rumors that US music group Warner Music might bid for the UK music company. In addition, Morgan Stanley upgraded EMI from “underweight” to “equalweight”.

London’s equities markets were up on the day Thursday as the FTSE 100 added 1.6 percent to 5,677.7 and the FTSE 250 gained 1.5 percent to 9,190.5.

The telecoms sector was mixed on the day. BT Group added 1.45 percent to 226¾p on rumors that Deutsche Telecom is thinking about proffering a bid. The rumor, reported by a German business magazine, was considered possible by many analysts. Elsewhere in the sector, Vodafone was up 3.5 percent to 118p on a “buy” recommendation from Credit Suisse. Cable & Wireless, however, dropped 2.5 percent to 97½p after it issued a disappointing full-year report and a cancellation of its announced share buyback.

PartyGaming was up 0.8 percent to 123¾p, but analysts believe that shares in the online gaming business will open 3 to 4 percent lower tomorrow, taking into account that just before the close of the trading day the US House Judiciary Committee approved legislation outlawing online gambling in the United States, sending the bill on to the full house for a vote.

Airports operator BAA dropped 5.6 percent to 787½p on news that the Office of Fair Trading will investigate the UK airport industry to determine whether the current structure of the market works to the advantage of consumers.

Gainers included pub operator Mitchells & Butlers, up 3.7 percent to 499¼p when stake building rumors by Robert Tchenguiz continued to circulate.

The mining sector also saw gains as metals prices rebounded. Kazakhmys added 5.4 percent to £10.76, while Antofagasta gained 3.6 percent to £20.68.

In London on Wednesday the equities markets took a tumble after Tuesday‘s gains, with the FTSE 100 dropping 1.6 percent to 5,587.1 and the FTSE 250 dropping 1.95 percent to 9,054. Much of the declines on the 100 were put to losses in the oil and mining sectors.

Among blue-chip miners, Kazakhmys lost 5.7 percent to £10.20 and Antofagasta was down 3.7 percent to £19.95. Mid-cap miners did better, with Vedanta adding 1.8 percent to £13.13, while Lonmin was up 0.45 percent to £24.52.

In the oil sector, a drop in the price of crude oil sent Cairn Energy down 4.7 percent to £20.83.

The online gaming sector provided the biggest loser on the 100 on concerns that a Judiciary Committee vote in the United States on a bill that would outlaw online gambling could send the legislation to a full vote in the House of Representatives as early as June 11. The prospect sent shares in PartyGaming down 6.5 percent to 112¾p. The news that two of PartyGaming’s founders are resigning from the board and could sell much of their 39 percents take in the company also figured in the day’s loss.

British Airways was down 0.9 percent on the day to 335p on reports that bird flu might have spread person-to-person in Indonesia.

Only six stocks on the 100 closed the day with gains. Scottish Power added 1.9 percent to 553½p on a full-year report that exceeded expectations. Another of the day’s gainers was pubs operator Mitchells & Butlers, which was up 2.45 percent to 481¼p on a rumor that Robert Tchenguiz, who recently walked away from a bid for the company, was planning on purchasing a substantial block of M&B’s stock during the day as a move toward another attempt to buy the company. By law he cannot make another bid until November, but due to a recent rules change he can legally build his stake before that time.

After big declines on Monday, the London equities markets were significantly on Tuesday. The FTSE 100 saw its largest percentage gain since April of 2003, adding 2.6 percent on the day to 5,678.7. Meanwhile, the FTSE 250 put on the most points on one day in its history, gaining 405.7 points, 4.6 percent, to 9,234.3.

Only six companies on the 100 declined on the day. Among those were retailer Marks & Spencer, which lost 3.2 percent to 549p on a disappointing full year report, which included only a 5 percent increase in sales at its refurbished stores. Also down on the day was mobile phone group Vodafone, which was down 1 percent to 116¾p ahead of an earnings report due next week.

Commodities prices were on the rise once again, leading to steep gains on the mining and oil sectors. Among miners, Kazakhmys was up 13 percent to £10.82. Xstrata added 10 percent to £19.42, while Antofagasta gained 9.7 percent to £20.72.

Gains in the oil sector were not as large, but were still substantial. BP and BG Group each added 4.2 percent, to 635p and 673p respectively. Royal Dutch Shell gained 3.8 percent to close at £18.78.

The real estate sector saw big gains, as well. Hammerson and Liberty International were each up 7 percent on the day, to £11.23 and £10.42 respectively. British Land gained 6.4 percent to £12.38 after it said that its net asset value had climbed 32 percent and announced that it would change over to a tax-efficient investment trust status as quickly as it could. Land Securities advanced by 5.6 percent to £17.80 on an upgrade from Merrill Lynch.

The London equities markets suffered another day of losses on Monday, taking the FTSE 100 to its lowest point since the middle of December. The 100 dropped 2.2 percent to 5,523.7, bringing losses in four sessions to 5.4 percent. The FTSE 250 dropped 4 percent to 8,828.6, its largest daily percentage loss in six years. Mining, and steel were all instrumental in the declines, as was news of lower metals prices and declining markets in Asia.

Some analysts blamed much of the recent declines on unusual amounts of derivatives activity by hedge funds and investment banks that are said to have made substantial bets on the direction of volatility in the markets. Those investments are now unraveling and the banks and funds are trying, it is said, to balance their books by selling FTSE index futures. One trader said that Monday was repeat of Wednesday’s huge losses.

Corus Group was the biggest loser of the day on the 100. The steel producer lost 9.3 percent to 344½p.

In the mining sector, Xstrata was down 8.7 percent to £17.64. Kazakhmys dropped 8.5 percent to 958p, while Antofagasta declined by 7.3 percent to £18.89.

Only nine stocks on the 100 saw gains on the day. Alliance & Leicester, for example, saw a gain of 2.5 percent to £11.43 on the news that Credit Agricole is considering a bid.

In London on Friday the FTSE 100 was lower again, while the FTSE 250 gained on the day, but both indexes were lower on the week. The 100 lost 0.2 percent on the day, 4.3 percent on the week, and is down 4.3 percent in the past two weeks, ending the day at 5,657.4. The 250 added 0.6 percent on the day but was down by 6.3 percent for the week to close at 9,192.6.

Homebuilders were up on the day after yesterday’s declines due to concerns that interest rates in the UK are about to go up. Retirement home builder McCarthy & Stone added 8.2 percent to 759½p, while Persimmon was up 4.5 percent to £12.00 and Barratt Developments gained 5 percent to 887p.

The biggest gains on the 100 came for British Airways, after it said that profits were up for the full year, helped by the first profit from its shorter routes in ten years. BA added 9.1 percent to 349½p.

The largest losses of the day came in the mining sector. With the price of metals down again, Antofagasta dropped 2.5 percent to £20.39, Xstrata was down 3.7 percent to £19.32, and Kazakhmys declined by 4.4 percent to £10.46.

Supermarket chain William Morrison added 0.9 percent to 191½p on an upgrade to “buy” from Citigroup.

The London equities markets were lower on Thursday, with the FTSE 100 down 0.07 percent to 5,671.6 and the FTSE 250 dropping by a substantial 1.5 percent to 9,134.8. Trade was heavy at nearly 4 billion shares on the day. Homebuilders and the oil sector were both instrumental in the declines on both indexes.

In the oil sector, Cairn Energy dropped 4.2 percent to £20.69. Among mid-caps, Dana Petroleum dropped 6 percent to 917½p. Also in stocks related to commodities, miner Kazakhmys was down 3 percent to £10.94.

Among homebuilders, Persimmon dropped 4.4 percent to £11.48, while Taylor Woodrow lost 5.6 percent to 320½p and George Wimpey was down 4.3 percent to 436½p. Crest Nicholson dropped 3.2 percent to 320¼p and Bovis Homes was down 4.5 percent to 755p. A major factor in the sector’s declines was said to be reaction to the news that a member of the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee had voted to raise interest rates at the committee’s meeting this month.

Telecom BT Group added 8 percent on the day to 226¼p on a positive quarterly earnings report and predications that there is more growth to come.

Among losers, brewer SABMiller lost 3 percent £10.61 despite a strong full-year earnings report, when it warned of higher input costs and price declines in the US beer market.

The equities markets in London were mixed on Tuesday. The FTSE 100 was up for the first time in five days, but the gain was only a slight 0.08 percent to 5,846.2 Meanwhile, the FTSE 250 dropped 0.16 percent to 9,542.2 as mid-cap miners saw losses.

There were gains on the day in individual stocks. BSkyB added 3.2 percent to 545½p after hedge fund traders closed out their short positions after it became clear that Sky would hold on to most of its rights to broadcast Premier League events. In consequence, Morgan Stanley and Cazenove both abandoned their “underweight” recommendations on the satellite broadcaster’s shares.

Health and beauty retailer Boots also saw gains on the day ahead of its earnings report, due Thursday, which rumor says will show a record pre-tax profit. In addition, it is being said that Boots has downplayed possible cost savings stemming from its merger with Alliance UniChem. The combination of talk spurred Deutsche Bank to up its rating of Boots to “buy” and to set its target share price at 850p. Boots added 1.6 percent on the day to 734½p. UniChem was also up, gaining 2.7 percent to 933p.

Elsewhere in the retail sector, Marks & Spencer was flat at 596p. Baugur, which sold out Marks & Spencer last week, is now said to be looking at building a stake in supermarket chain William Morrison, which added 1.7 percent to 194½p on the rumors.

London equities markets were down substantially again on Monday, with the FTSE 100 losing 1.2 percent to 5,841.3 and the FTSE 250 falling 2.6 percent to 9,557.3. It was the fifth session of losses in a row for the 100.

The mining sector accounted for a substantial amount of the declines. Xstrata and Kazakhmys each lost 8.4 percent, to £22.08 and £12.04 respectively. Xstrata is said to be looking for a way to fund an offer of £9.4 billion for Canadian miner Falconbridge. Elsewhere in the sector, Antofagasta dropped 6.9 percent to £22.73, while BHP Billiton was down 5.6 percent to £11.02.

The steel sector also saw losses as Anglo-Dutch group Corus was down 3.7 percent to 421¼p after US investor Brandes said that it has reduced its holding in the company from 4.8 percent to 3.79 percent.

Retailer Next was also down, by 0.3 percent to £17.45 even though Man Securities raised its target share price for the company from £19 to £22.50 before Next’s trading update, due on Wednesday.

Among banks, Lloyds TSB added 0.8 percent to 510p on a possible dividend yield of 6.7 percent.

The telecommunications sector had a good day. Vodafone, which had UBS hike its target share price to 153p and issue a “buy” recommendation, was up 1.2 percent to 125¼p. Meanwhile, BT Group gained 2.6 percent to 216p on rumors that it will have a smaller-than-projected pension fund deficit when it issues its full-year report on Thursday.