Ripping results published by Tesco for the Christmas trading period failed to help the UK benchmark FTSE 100 index, which has shed about 18 points to 4,828 this morning.
Tesco is down 8p to 315.25p as growth in sales failed to meet analysts' expectations, leaving the stock to be downgraded to ‘hold’ from ‘buy’. Companies feeling the effects of the climbing price of oil include steel company Corus, down a penny to 52.25p, along with miner BHP Billiton, down 8.50p to 633.50p. At the other end of the scale Cairn Energy has picked up 14p to 1,106p. In Japan, stocks were down at close this morning led by exporters, as crude oil climbed for a fifth day, triggering concerns that higher global fuel costs threaten consumer spending. The Nikkei 225 Stock Aver...
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