Cazenove continues its long reign at the top of our two 'size' tables this quarter. In the first table, placing brokers according to the numbers of their stock market clients, its total has fallen again, from 206.5 last time to 203 this quarter. It is still comfortably ahead of nearest rival UBS, whose clients numbers also show a dip, from 131 to 126. Brewin Dolphin Securities, holding on to its third place, has managed to buck the trend and can claim client numbers up from 108.5 to 112. The renamed Old Mutual Securities, now listed as Arbuthnot, remains at eleventh place with 67 clients.

Stockbrokers with clients making the most profit compose the second 'size' table. Cazenove, as mentioned above, appears immovable in the top slot, although this time the figure is down to £6,485.8m from £7,265.6m in February. Hoare Govett Ltd has climbed into second place from fourth last time, again with a reduced figure of £3,406.6m (previously £3,975.1m), displacing UBS Ltd which has fallen from number two to number four. Arbuthnot gains ground this quarter, jumping three places to eighth, but otherwise there is little change in the placings.

The third table is the first of the two 'growth' tables and shows fastest growing clients based on average increase in pre-tax profits. Here we have a change at the head of the list, where KBC Peel Hunt has continued its climb and reached the top with a figure of 4%, well up on the 2.1% achieved by last quarter's number one Brewin Dolphin Securities, which is now in second place with -0.1%. All firms except KBC Peel Hunt have clients with negative growth, ranging down to Collins Stewart with a figure of -15.1%. Cazenove has climbed from seventh position last quarter to fourth this time; Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein has made even more of a jump, from tenth place to fifth.

The final table, the second in the 'growth' category, is concerned with firms whose clients can post the fastest-growing earnings ­ based on average increase in earnings per share. Here there has been rather more movement in the rankings than in the other three tables. The first four places have all changed around ­ KBC Peel Hunt is now in the lead with 3.0%, up from fourth and ahead of Seymour Brewin Dolphin which has dropped back from first to second place. Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein has moved up smartly, from number ten and -9.6% in February to third place with 1.3% this time. A sad rash of minus signs disfigures the table from UBS in fifth place with -4.1% down to HSBC with -14.7%.