LONDON MARKETS: ARM Rallies, RSA Slumps But FTSE Holds Steady

By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.K.'s FTSE 100 index was little changed on Friday, as ARM Holdings PLC rallied on news Google may use its technology, while RSA Insurance PLC tumbled after the chief executive resigned.

The benchmark index was flat around 6,445.30, but on track for a 1.6% weekly loss.

Shares of ARM Holdings (ARMHY) jumped 5.5% after Bloomberg reported that Google Inc. (GOOG) is considering making its own server processors, using technology from the U.K. chip designer.

RSA Insurance Group PLC slumped 18% after Chief Executive Simon Lee resigned and the company warned that its troubled Irish unit will hit 2013 earnings.

Among other stocks, shares of AstraZeneca PLC rose 2.2% after the drug maker said an experimental gout drug met its goal in a late-stage clinical trial.

Most mining firms were higher after UBS lifted the sector to overweight from neutral. Glencore Xstrata PLC (GLCNF) rose 1%, BHP Billiton PLC (BHP) climbed 0.6% and Randgold Resources Ltd. inched 0.2% higher.

Anglo American PLC , however, lost 0.8% after Deutsche Bank cut the miner to hold from buy.

Oil firms further slipped as oil prices dropped and UBS cut the oil and gas sector to neutral from overweight. Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSB) dropped 1% and BP PLC (BP) lost 0.5%.

Centrica PLC gave up 0.9% after Société Générale cut the gas-utility firm to hold from buy, according to Dow Jones Newswires.

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