Earnings figures boost FTSE

Strong earnings figures from Apple and investment bank Morgan Stanley whetted investors' appetite for risk today but failed to keep the London market out of the red.

The FTSE 100 Index closed just four points lower at 6018.3 as traders secured profits ahead of the four-day holiday weekend.

Disappointing jobs and manufacturing data from the US also dampened sentiment in London, but failed to derail the rally on Wall Street's Dow Jones Industrial Average.

The US figures revealed new claims for unemployment benefits fell less than expected last week, while the previous week's figures were also revised up.

UK investors had been cheered by surprise figures on the UK economy after public sector borrowing for March came in below expectations and the retail sector delivered a pleasing 0.2% rise in sales last month.

The pound recovered some ground after the strong economic data was published and rose against the US dollar at 1.65 and the euro at 1.13.

The Footsie, which jumped by 125 points yesterday, was earlier lifted by the latest raft of robust US earnings updates, with Apple announcing that its earnings had nearly doubled, helped by demand for its iPhone.

Intel shares also jumped on Wall Street after the chip maker reported that its income rose 29% in the first quarter because of rising demand for personal computers.

Morgan Stanley earnings beat estimates sparking gains in the banking sector, as Barclays advanced 4.5p at 298.9p and Lloyds lifted 0.8p at 59.9p.

However, market heavyweight Vodafone acted as a drag on the wider market, dropping 4% or 7.6p to 169p to the bottom of the index. The telecoms giant was hit by concerns arising from weak results reported by its Dutch peer KPN.

Retailers struggled to make progress despite new figures from the Office for National Statistics defying expectations for a 0.5% drop in sales in March. Next rose 46p to 2239p, but Marks & Spencer eased 1.2p to 380.6p and B&Q owner Kingfisher slipped 3.5p to 273.8p.

Miners were higher after the price of gold hit a new high above 1500 dollars an ounce, although BP and Royal Dutch Shell failed to hold on to early session gains ahead of figures next week and as the Brent crude price rallied over 124 US dollars a barrel at one stage.

BP was 5.6p lower at 460.6p, while Royal Dutch Shell slipped 4p to 2254p.

In corporate news, shares in William Hill jumped 7% after the bookmaker reported strong trading in the first quarter of the year. High street earnings rose 24% on net revenues 8% higher, while it continues to see strong demand for its online gambling sites.

Shares were up 14.8p to 213.3p, making the company the leading riser in the FTSE 250 Index.

The biggest Footsie risers were Autonomy up 112p at 1620p, Wood Group ahead 25.5p at 706p, TUI Travel up 7p at 238.9p and Johnson Matthey ahead 43p at 1924p.

The biggest Footsie fallers were Vodafone down 7.6p at 169.1p, ITV off 2.2p at 74.5p, Carnival down 57p at 2375p and BT Group off 3.3p at 189p.