oyds said its top executive would get no salary increasethis year, and could be forced to repay any bonuses theyreceive. [ID:nLU614683]
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.L) bucked the downward trend
jonathan james pumps ,however, adding 5.7 percent having lagged the sector rally.
Other financial issues were also weak, with insurers OldMutual (OML.L)
jonathan james pumps , Standard Life (SL.L)
jonathan james pumps , Aviva (AV.L) andPrudential (PRU.L) down between 1.0 and 1.9 percent.
OILS, UTILITIES SUPPORTED
Oil majors were higher as investors assessed a week ofabove-forecast quarterly earnings, with BP (BP.L), Royal DutchShell (RDSa.L) and Tullow Oil (TLW.L) up between 0.4 and 0.8percent.
Blue-chip utilities moved higher as defensive issues sawsome support return and on broker comment.
Pennon Group (PNN.L) stood out, up 1.8 percent as UBSstarted coverage on the stock with a "buy" rating in a sectorreview. But United Utilities (UU.L) missed out, however, as UBSinitiated the stock with a "sell" rating.
Broker upgrades provided a lift for BAE Systems (BAES.L), up1.9 percent after a Morgan Stanley upgrade, and Lonmin (LMI.L)
Cheap Jersey 339 12,ahead 2 percent as Investec raised its rating.
U.S. stocks were mixed overnight after Chrysler filed forbankruptcy on Thursday and announced an industry-changing dealwith Fiat (FIA.MI), after being pummelled by sliding auto salesand an inability to reach agreement on restructuring its debt.[ID:nLU940906]
Tokyo's Nikkei average .N225
jonathan james pumps , however, rose 1.3 percentshrugging aside news that Japan has edged back into deflation,less than two years after it last escaped it, while joblessnessis rising at a record rate, adding to the strains for theJapanese economy even as hard-hit manufacturers show signs ofstabilising. [ID:nT316908]
Meanwhile, Mexico began shutting down parts of its economyto slow the spread of a new flu strain as more cases were foundin the United States and officials urged increased worldwideprecautions against an imminent pandemic.
(For more on the flu, double click on [nF