London markets fail to regain mining ground

The FTSE 100 index closed down 24.8 points or 0.5% to 4703.9 after Deutsche Bank advised clients to trim holdings in mining companies. As a result, Rio Tinto – the world’s third largest mining company – dropped 32p or 2.2% to £14.42 while Anglo American – no.2 in the mining pecking order – slipped 1.7% to £11.85. Another key factor in today’s trading was the New York crude oil price, which dropped to its lowest level in almost four months earlier today at $40.45 before rebounding to around £42.50. This encouraged BP investors to bounce back to close down just 7p or 1.4% to 507p whi...