FTSE 100 up almost one per cent as miners reverse earlier losses
Miners rebound on Thursday to see FTSE 100 up by close of trade
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By Matt Hallam. |  |
Thursday, 18, Feb 2010 05:30
By Sarah Garrod.
Britain's leading share index the FTSE 100 was up 0.92 per cent, or 48.45 points, as the markets drew to a close today.
Miners reversed losses felt early in the day, with Vedanta Resources ending Thursday up 2.4 per cent and Xstrata was up 2.21 per cent.
Leading the gainers as the markets in London closed was BAE Systems, adding 4.3 per cent, following the defence company's 2009 preliminary results, which were announced this morning.
DIY-store owner Kingfisher saw shares up 1.97 per cent, as the firm announced good results today. Ian Cheshire, Group chief executive, said: "Underlying sales trends remained relatively resilient in the fourth quarter before trading in January was significantly disrupted by the heavy snow and low temperatures across Europe, particularly in the UK and Poland.
"However, our on-going programme of self-help initiatives on gross margin and costs resulted in strong quarterly profit growth and so we expect our full year earnings will be slightly ahead of current analyst consensus expectations when we announce our annual results next month."
Reed Elsevier led the FTSE fallers after announcing its 2010 outlook on Thursday, down 1.48 per cent, while BT Group was also a drag on the share index, shedding 1.19 per cent by close of play.