Solid start for FTSE

Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Group has added 1.75p to 79.25p. Rentokil leads the drop, down 2.75p to 145p. Land Securities has leaked 26p to 1,374p, along with British Land, down 14p to 882p. Reports published by lenders last week suggested the UK housing market fell again in December, with house prices slipping and numbers of first time buyers still below historical averages. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 Stock Average index closed at its highest level in almost six months, boosted by a surge in US sales of electronic goods made by Canon. The Nikkei gained 0.3% to 11,517.75 in shorte...