STOCKS NEWS EUROPE-Northgate helps UK small caps outperform

The FTSE small cap index falls 0.2 percent, outperforming junior-listed AIM shares, mid-caps and the blue chips all down between 0.8 percent and 0.9 percent.

Shares in Northgate (LSE: NTG.L - news) rise 1.1 percent to 428.3 pence, featuring among the largest single contributors to the FTSE small cap index, as the light commercial vehicle hire firm unveils a 14 percent increase in underlying profit before tax for the six months to October.

"Overall, we see this as an encouraging set of figures," N+1 Singer says in a note. "We remain supportive of the investment case on recovery grounds, with both core markets showing signs of improvement and remain at BUY with an unchanged 450 (pence target price)."

AIM-listed Albemarle & Bond (LSE: ABM.L - news) sheds 15.8 percent to a new all-time low as the pawnbroker puts itself up for sale, just days after warning it is expected to make a loss for the first five months of the year.

Reuters messaging rm://francesco.canepa.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net