Royal Dutch Shell

Reports of a 'light sheen' of oil found near production sites in the Gulf of Mexico sent shares in the UK oil majors lower this morning.

Although many thought the era of the big mining mergers was over, some believe newly-formed GlenStrata could have its sights on Anglo-American.

Pfizer deal becomes third largest

Poor results from companies such as Unilever, AstraZeneca and Shell last week showed the valuation gap between defensives and cyclicals is closing in a "vicious" fashion, according to JO Hambro Capital Management's James Lowen.

Income investors enjoyed a bumper year in 2011 as dividends from UK-listed companies hit an all-time high, surging 12.8% to £67.8bn.

The latest Dividend Monitor report from Capita Registrars has unveiled the top ten dividend paying stocks in the UK market last year.

Nigel Thomas, manager of the £2.8bn AXA Framlington UK Select Opportunities fund, has said UK equities are cheap, but have little scope to rise in the current environment.

This week saw a round of updates from some of the UK's largest dividend payers, including BP, Shell, Glaxo and British American Tobacco. But is it time for investors to be selling the big names?

Royal Dutch Shell beat forecasts from analysts today after profits doubled to $6.98bn in the third quarter.

Simon Gergel, director at RCM, is the portfolio manager of the Merchants Trust plc. He talks to Jane Wallace about the trust's objectives and performance.