The benchmark FTSE 100 index closed down struggled to maintain a positive frame this afternoon and closed down four points today to 4,403.3despite gains made by energy stocks BP and Shell Transport & Trading.
BP rose 1.5p to 482.5p, while Shell Transport & Trading gained 1.5p to 402.25p. Mining stocks eventually ended as today's winners. BHP Billiton advanced 25p to 481.25p, and Rio Tinto rose 10p to 1,323p while Antofagasta, another mining firm, also added 14.5p to 957.5p. Xstrata, one of the world's biggest coal exporters, also gained 1.5p to 725.5p. ITV climbed 1.75p to 114p after analysts at Credit Suisse First Boston raised the television company's earnings-per- share forecast with 13% to 4.5 pence for 2004. Weapons maker BAE Systems jumped 3p to 216p. Meanwhile, British Air...
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