London shares post hefty loses in early deals on Tuesday thanks to a mixed bag of company news and following southbound sessions on Wall Street and across Asia overnight. Heating and plumbing specialist Wolseley (WOS) was hard hit, followed by pharmas, house builders and financials. European markets are pretty mixed, with France's CAC 40 mildly lower, the German DAX up a fraction and the Euro Stoxx 50 roughly flat.

Plumbing and heating product distributor Wolseley sheds 10.6% to £37.38 as chief executive Ian Meakins says it faces patchy demand in international markets. Profit from ongoing operations for the year to 31 July 2015 was solid but was hit by £242 million of impairments and exceptional items. Underlying earnings per share was 230.2p.

Going the other way is struggling mining giant Glencore (GLEN), which rallies 10% having collapsed by around 30% on Monday. But this looks likely to provide just brief respite for stricken shareholders with analyst lining up to flag the ongoing threats to the group's finances if commodity prices don't pick up fast.

Among the bigger movers, stock broker Panmure Gordon (PMR:AIM) crashes 23% to 95.5p as the City-based business plunges £200,000 into the red at the half year stage.

But it is broadcast minnow Mirada (MIRA:AIM) that heads the AIM loser board on Tuesday after missing the mark with a pre-close trading update. Traders dislike news of delays in deploying two networks, due to the customer, which would result in limited revenues from licence fees being recognised from these networks in 2016. The shares tumble close on 26% to 7.88p.

It's a very mixed bag across the small cap resources space. On the positive side, Alecto Minerals (ALO:AIM) jumps 20% to 0.12p after a scoping study shows robust economics for a joint venture heap-leach project with Desert Gold Ventures.

Also upbeat is Noricum Gold (NMG:AIM), up 11% to 0.15p, thanks to an update on exploration works currently underway at the 861 km sq Bolnisi Project, which is located in the Republic of Georgia.

But firmly in the market's black books is Nyota Minerals (NYO:AIM) as the tiddler posts more full year losses, even if they are reduced. The pre-tax figure stands at $3.2 million for the year to 30 June, versus a $3.8 million deficit a year earlier.

And Xtract Resources (XTR:AIM) fairs little better as it sings a similar song. Its shares slump 17% to 0.25p despite reducing its net loss by 20% to £0.79 million, and reporting a hike in net assets, along with a strong balance sheet.

Healthcare and audio chips minnow Toumaz (TMZ:AIM) is another AIM faller on widening pre-tax losses despite higher revenues. The shares slide 13% to 2.5p.

Direct shopping-to-education supplies play Findel (FDL) surges 16.6% higher to 235p on news Mike Ashley's Sports Direct International (SPD) has acquired an 18% stake; Findel also announces it has received an offer for its sports retailing business Kitbag, most likely from Sports Direct, though 'there can be no certainty that a deal will be reached'.

Respiratory-disease drug developer Verona Pharma (VRP:AIM) climbs 10.9% to 4.8p on tests showing that its RPL554 treatment improves breathing in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) sufferers.

Elsewhere, Revolution Bars (RBG), which operates 50 bars around the UK, falls 2.4% to 183p despite reporting a 12% rise in adjusted pre-tax profit to £8.3 million in the year ended 30 June, in line with market expectations. Like-for-like sales are up by 3% and the group plans to open five new bars next year.

Chinese lottery group DJI (DJI:AIM) slides 4.4% to 44p after its pre-tax loss widens from £2.3 million to £3.3 million in the first half with a 38% drop in net revenue. This is due to the temporary suspension of lottery sales in China on 1 March, which has yet to be lifted.

Upholstered furniture and floorings retailer ScS (SCS) edges 3.12p higher to 159p as robust full-year results reveal May's profit warning to have been no more than a blip. There's also a positive current trading statement, highlighting 13.3% growth in the order book over the opening nine weeks of the new financial year.

Men's formalwear specialist Moss Bros (MOSB) is marked up 6% to 97p, as significantly better-than-expected interim results, driven by a strong retail performance and recovery in the hire business, stoke full-year earnings upgrades.

Pure-play online fashion retailer Boohoo (BOO:AIM), a running Shares Play of the Week, rises 3.8% to 34.25p as interims show better-than-expected revenue growth and management upgrades full-year sales guidance.

Staffline (STAF:AIM) is up 1.1% at £15.67 as it completes a deal to buy Milestone, a specialist recruiter in the transport and logistics sector. Heavy goods vehicle (HGV) drivers are in demand because of a growing distribution industry but there is a limited supply of qualified personnel, Staffline chief executive Andy Hogarth says.

Engineer Rotork (ROR) goes bargain hunting in the distressed oil and gas services industry, snapping up a couple of small scale operators in France and the US. Chief executive Peter France says the acquisitions, which total around £9 million will play a role in broadening Rotork's offer and service to customers. Shares in the stock fall 1% to 165p.

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Issue Date: 29 Sep 2015