It is not to be confused with Empire Online, the new internet poker marketing company, whose shares gave back 3.5p to close at 179.5p, compared with a float price of 175p last month. The purchases had the effect of halting the decline, and Berkeley Scott shares were up 2p to 39.5p yesterday.There was vague bid speculation at Empire Interactive The publisher of cheap computer games was up 0.38p to 9p. BG Group rose 4p to a record 476.5p, and BHP Billiton, the natural resources giant which makes about one-third of its profits from oil and gas, jumped 15p to 737p.Unusually, the mid-cap FTSE 250 was headed in the opposite direction to the FTSE 100, largely because of a profits warning from Travis Perkins, the building materials supplier which has just bought Wickes. Icelandair topped up its "strategic stake", up from 11 per cent to 11.5 per cent, helping the no-frills airlineup a penny to 259p.Three directors weighed in to buy shares in Berkeley Scott, the recruitment firm whose shares have collapsed since their flotation by Evolution Securities last year. The directors, including the chairman, Jeremy Hamer, bought a total of 72,000 shares at between 34p and 37p, compared with the 71p placing price.
No such worry at easyJet, though, where Icelanders are also on the march. Less than a week after one bidder pulled out, one of the two remaining consortia was in turmoil over the continued role of Baugur, the Icelandic retailer whose chief executive is facing fraud charges. And there were falls for other suppliers to tradesmen, including Marshalls ,off 11.75p at 293p, and SIG, 18.5p lower at 626.5p.Somerfield dipped 4p to 191.5p as the long-running takeover battle took another turn for the worse, as far as the supermarket's shareholders are concerned. Kingfisher, which has already warned of disappointing sales at B&Q, fell a further 4p to 246.25p.
Its shares were off 139p at 1,638p, and the company's downbeat comments triggered selling across the sector. Shell is in a similarly sweet spot, with its shares additionally buoyed by the technicalities of the merger between the English and Dutch halves of the company Its shares were up 10.25p at 563.25p. Although ITV shares jumped 3.75p to 128.5p, that represents a significant distance from the supposed takeover price, reflecting a degree of caution regarding the stories and a degree of realism about the financing difficulties a bidding consortium has to overcome.Only the mighty Vodafone (unchanged at 136.25p) was more heavily traded yesterday, as the FTSE 100 shot to another three-year high. The index, up 23.3 to 5,184.3, has risen for five days in a row.