FTSE 100 unchanged in early trade as Thomas Cook leads gainers

Britain's leading shares index the FTSE 100 was unchanged by 10:10 GMT, as Thomas Cook Group led the gains.

The market was at a standstill at 5,640.53, with Smith and Nephew leading the blue-chip falls on Thursday morning.

Following an investor day Thomas Cook Group saw its shares rise by three per cent, while shares in Home Retail, which owns Homebase, rose by 1.83 per cent after its annual profits beat forecasts.

Terry Duddy, chief executive of Home Retail Group, said following the firm's results: "This is a good outcome to a challenging year, and is combined with excellent cash generation.

"For the new financial year, we continue to plan cautiously given the uncertain economic outlook, but do so from our position of operational and financial strength."

Despite reporting good profits in 2009 this morning, UK supermarket chain Morrison WM Supermarkets saw shares shed 1.68 per cent.