MARKET REPORT

A DOWNGRADE from broker JPMorgan Cazenove took the fizz out of bottler Coca-Cola HBC, 115p adrift at 2470p.

Defence and aerospace firms were in retreat after a profit warning from Ultra Electronics.

BAE Systems fell 19p to 537p, while QinetiQ and Meggitt lost 14½p to 214¼p and 19p to 472½p.

Outsourcer Mitie Group eased 10¼p to 226½p as it announced former Virgin Active health clubs boss Paul Woolf as its new finance chief, while competition fears sent shares in funeral services group Dignity 204p lower to 2253p.

Fishing Republic sank 15½p to 22½p after a profit warning, while

Eco Atlantic Oil & Gas gained 2.38p to 24.63p after Africa Oil subscribed for nearly 20 per cent of its shares, raising about £8.5million for Eco, whose assets are offshore Guyana and Nambia.

The pair have also struck an alliance to identify new projects. Supply agreements boosted

Newmark Security 0.2p to 0.9p, while colour cosmetics supplier

Warpaint London added 8½p to 215p after raising £21.2million alongside the proposed acquisition of Retra Holdings.