Shares pushed down by fears rising crude price will hit world growth

FTSE: 5,914.89 (–20.87) Mid-250:11,543.37 (–30.75) Small Cap: 3,235.16 (–17.34)

THE LONDON market was dragged down yesterday by fears over the impact higher oil prices will have on inflation and global economic growth.

The FTSE 100 index closed 20.8 points lower at 5914.8 despite a solid round of earnings from the likes of Asia-focused bank Standard Chartered.

The crisis in Libya and fears that the unrest might spread to Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, has caused the price of Brent crude to reach $116 a barrel, while New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) crude hit $100.66.

London’s blue-chip fallers’ board was topped by leisure group Whitbread after it revealed a weaker trend for sales growth in recent weeks. Whitbread explained it was facing tougher comparatives with a year earlier, but the Costa, Premier Inn and Beefeater owner still dropped 5 per cent or 90p to 1644p.

The latest boost from the corporate results season came from Standard Chartered and broadcaster ITV after both delivered full-year results in line with expectations.

Standard, which reported a 19 per cent rise in annual profits and said it had made a record start to 2011, saw shares rally 70p to 1688p, a gain of 4 per cent.

At the end of a result season in which the sector has spared investors any more nasty surprises, banks offered some support to the wider market, with Lloyds Banking Group up 0.9p to 62.7p and Barclays increasing 1.1p to 314.4p.

At ITV, which said its transformation plan gathered momentum following a near-tripling in full-year profits, shares jumped 9 per cent or 7.9p to 93.4p.

Net advertising revenues are expected to be up 12 per cent in the current quarter and given recent trading it intends to restore its dividend this summer.

Outsourcer Serco hit the top of the FTSE 100 risers’ board after it posted a 21 per cent rise in pre-tax profits to £213.9 million for the year to December 31st. Shares were ahead 25.5p at 579.5p.

The impact of rising oil prices was shown on the FTSE 100 fallers’ board as Thomson Holidays owner TUI Travel dropped 6p to 231.1p and Rolls-Royce fell 16p to 597p.

Car insurer Admiral fell 3 per cent – 49.5p to 1658p – despite record profits and a 32 per cent jump in the number of cars insured in the UK . – (PA)