Miners drag FTSE lower

The benchmark blue-chip index has tumbled 14.98 points (0.34%) to 4421.77 by 8:45am. Rio Tinto is the biggest loser so far, falling 2.73% to £30.63 as it offered a share in a planned iron ore alliance with BHP Billiton to Chinalco as a peace offering, following the collapse of its $19.5bn deal with the Chinese firm. Fellow miner Antofagasta shed 2.14% to 664.5p, while Xstrata lost 1.75% to 758p. Eurasian Natural Resources is down 1.71% to 717.5p. However, Thomas Cook Group has gained 4% to 227.75p, as Arcantdor AG, a German retail group that filed for insolvency, has no immediate plan...