FTSE halts six-session slide; Yen hits overnight record

London's leading index climbed 45 points, or 0.8%, to 5,643 after closing down for a sixth consecutive session on Wednesday, taking its total fall over that period to 6.3%. Miners are going strong, with Xstrata and BHP Billiton both up more than 2.5%. Asia and the US posted losses overnight as concerns over Japan's nuclear crisis showed little sign of subsiding. The Nikkei closed down 1.4% to 8,963, while the Dow Jones turned in its worst performance since August, diving more than 2% to 11,613. Meanwhile, the Japanese yen hit a record post-war high against the US dollar earlier ...