Rising oil and lower dollar hurt FTSE firms

British Airways eventually closed down 6.25p or 2.8% to 217.5p – having earlier this month warned the oil price would increase its fuel bill by £245m this year - after the price of oil almost hit $50 a barrel, pushing the FTSE 100 index down 27.7 points or 0.58% to 4,733. Similarly Amvescap and Reuters – both firms which are dependent on US revenue - have had a rough afternoon as the value of the dollar almost slipped to a four-month low against sterling. Mining companies BHP Billiton and Antofagasta lost ground after it was revealed Chinese imports of copper fell last month, and in ...