FTSE 100 closes at 21 month high

The FTSE 100 ended at a 21 month high of 5,673, up 29 points. The market was boosted by a strong update from Legal and General and that the inflation rate fell sharply to 3% last month giving reassurance that the Bank of England will keep interest rates at low levels for the foreseeable future. The DOW Jones Industrials are currently up 103, to 10,889 as the markets continued to react positively to Obama's Victory in the House of Representatives on healthcare reform.

Desire Petroleum finally moves up

After several days of small, but steady falls, Desire Petroleum (DES) finally looks to be moving in the right direction with the shares currently up around 5.5%. Bulletin boards like iii.co.uk have been buzzing with around 1000 posts a day and the rumour mill surrounding the potential testing of core samples have been doing the rounds.  The results from Desire's Liz field are due any day which is increasing the volatility of this stock. Desire is not a stock "for widows or orphans" but the fact that it is so speculative makes the potential rewards so exciting. I have continued to hold as the share price has slipped over the last week and given the seismic data from the Desire field I am more than hopeful that the company's management will have chosen the Liz prospect for good reason i.e. that oil/gas shows are present.  The Falkland Islands drillers are at the high stress end of the spectrum and this week the adrenaline will be at maximum power as it could be the make or break for the stocks even though there are other drilling prospects for Ocean Guardian to drill.

GW Pharma announces positive clinical trial data in cancer pain

GW Pharma (GWP) announced today preliminary results of a Phase IIb dose-ranging trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of Sativex in the treatment of pain in patients with advanced cancer, who experience inadequate pain control during optimized chronic opioid therapy. 

This trial was performed in conjunction with GW's licensing partner for Sativex in the United States, Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd..  In the US, cancer pain represents the initial target indication for Sativex. Key Points: - Study meets key objectives of providing data to support entry into Phase III - Sativex shows statistically significant differences from placebo in pain scores, according to both the continuous response analysis and change from baseline analysis in NRS average pain - GW and Otsuka now planning End of Phase II meeting with the FDA to gain endorsement of the proposed Phase III program