Stocks on Aim continued to outperform those on the main market, with traders reluctant to commit to blue-chips as the US earnings season gets underway.
The FTSE 100 was stuck in neutral throughout the morning, and was down less than a point at 6,200 shortly before noon.
On London's Alternative Investment Market (Aim), the FTSE Aim 100 was 20 points higher at 3,420 and the FTSE Aim All-Share was three points higher at 724.
One stock not participating in Aim's general advance was renewable energy plant developer and operator REACT Energy PLC (LON:REAC), as it will now have to secure financing for the Clay Cross energy recovery facility in Derbyshire, after the local authority gave planning permission.
The shares tumbled 16% to 6.5p.
Also on the slide were shares in LiDCO Group plc (LON:LID), the blood monitoring medtech company, after it tumbled into the red, for which it blamed delayed sales.
Pre-tax losses were £340,000 versus a profit of £330,000 last time, prompting an 11% fall in the share price to 7.75p.
Also down 11% was Goldstone Resources Limited (LON:GRL), after the gold explorer revealed it had tapped up major shareholder Stratex International PLC (LON:SDI) for a £100,000 loan.
A number of Goldstone directors are waiving their fees from now on as the company looks to conserve cash.
Investors were throwing shares of Fishing Republic PLC (LON:FISH) back after its full-year results disappointed, despite the online fishing tackle seller saying they were in line with market expectations.
The shares shed 7.8% at 29.5p.
Shares in Red Rock Resources PLC (LON:RRR) climbed 25% to 0.625p after Paul Johnson, chief executive of Metal Tiger plc, bought 7.5mln shares, representing just over 3% of Red Rock's issued share capital.
There was good news for Gulf Keystone Petroleum Limited (LON:GKP), the Kurdistan-focused oil producer, as it confirmed the receipt of a US$15mln gross payment from the Kurdistan Regional Government for crude oil deliveries in March, bolstering its coffers up to US$69.5mln.
The shares advanced 10% to 6.69p, lifting its market capitalisation to £65mln.
Sector peer Northern Petroleum PLC (LON:NOP) slipped 4% to 2.52p, having risen to 2.75p at one point, after full-year results revealed a sharply narrowed loss of £10.7mln, versus a loss the year before of £59.1mln.