The FTSE 100 index is up about 7 points to 4,554 as three of the biggest stocks make gains to offset a fall by the banking sector sparked by RBOS' acquisition of a US bank.
Vodafone is up 3p to 142.5p. GlaxoSmithKline is up 11p to 1,189p. BP is up 1.75p to 494p as oil prices reach new highs on security fears linked to the Middle East. Aviva is up 3p to 555.5p after reporting growth in both sales and profit margins from its UK and European businesses in the first quarter, helping send the insurance sector higher. L&G is up 0.75p to 95p, Pru is up 6p to 455.5p, and Friends Prov is up 2.75p to 147.5p. Royal Bank of Scotland is down 72p to 1,650p after announcing it will sell up to £2.5bn worth of new shares to help fund the $10bn purchase of Charte...
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