Support services stocks were firmly in the red on Friday afternoon with Aggreko and Bunzl providing a drag.

FTSE 100 temporary power and temperature control group Aggreko sank over 8% after reporting that since its last trading update, exchange rates have "moved against us" and bad debt provisions have increased. Both of these will have a 2.5% adverse impact on the bottom line this year.

Blue-chip distribution and outsourcing group Bunzl was also lower after saying that the third quarter saw a moderation in the underlying revenue growth rate, particularly in North America, where the company is going up against tough comparatives.

Electronics components supplier Premier Farnell was trading lower after confirming the date that Chief Financial Officer Nicholas Cadbury is due to leave the board: Cadbury is off to Whitbread on 14th November.

Shaft Sinkers, an international shaft sinking and underground construction group, fell to a 52-week low following news that some of its workers at Lonmin's Saffy shaft have gone on strike.


Heading the other way was the electronic and electrical equipment sector with shares in FTSE 250 constituent Spectris up over 12%.

The instrumentation and controls group said this morning that reported sales during the last quarter were up 12% with LFL growth achieved across the board.

Despite seeing LFL sales growth slow down from the first half, analysts hailed this a robust performance admits tough conditions.

Jefferies reiterated its 'buy' rating for the stock saying: "Spectris has modest visibility, and hence outlook statements are typically limited in terms of the guidance given to the market (...) This is a resilient performance and better than many will have feared, with slower growth versus 1H12, reflecting the macro-economic environment - this has been anticipated by the market."



Top performing sectors so far today
Electronic & Electrical Equipment 3,348.38 +4.16%
Chemicals 8,603.02 +1.41%
Real Estate Investment & Services 1,801.09 +0.83%
Household Goods & Home Construction 7,801.91 +0.80%
Industrial Transportation 2,444.50 +0.78%

Bottom performing sectors so far today
Industrial Metals & Mining 2,662.36 -3.45%
Fixed Line Telecommunications 2,585.24 -1.73%
Support Services 5,163.73 -1.38%
Automobiles & Parts 4,940.33 -1.26%
Construction & Materials 3,359.97 -1.06%

BC

Related share prices
Aggreko (AGK) share price
Bunzl (BNZL) share price
Spectris (SXS) share price
Premier Farnell (PFL) share price
Shaft Sinkers Holdings (SHFT) share price