Mining stocks pulled the FTSE below 4,450 on Tuesday as Rio Tinto, Xstrata, Antofagasta and Vedanta Resources fell.
Equity giants BA, Unilever and Tesco were among the top winners, with the latter announcing steady UK sales as a result of its international business. The supermarket giant released its pre-Christmas trading statement this morning, reporting a group sales increase of 11.6%, driven by international expansion and steady UK growth against a "challenging" backdrop caused by the economic slowdown. In the UK, like-for-like sales in the seven weeks to 10 January, excluding petrol, increased by 2.5% including VAT. The group says it will be creating up to 10,000 jobs in the UK by 2010, accordi...
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