Dow Jones

UK stocks are struggling to make any headway this morning, as Reuters and Sainsburys lead the losses.

Early trading on the London Stock Exchange indicates investment firms are now waiting for that all-important Bank of England base rate announcement, as performance is so far mixed around the prospect of an interest rate rise.

Stock market trading recovered well after the bank holiday downturn as news from the mining sector suggests Chinese interest in iron ore is not abating after all.

The benchmark FTSE 100 ended Thursday down 5 points at 4,519.50 after UK stocks fell, paced by mining companies on concerns slowing demand from China will hurt profits.

Lack of confidence is trading reports today set the tone for London stocks activity and really failed to progress any further by close of business, as Unilever and Legal & General encouraged selling rather than buying.

Shares on the London Stock Exchange are struggling to hold their positions this morning as Unilever's own stock took its biggest hit in six months and L&G reported sales are down.

It's the turn of the pharmaceutical and medical firms to take a hit on the FTSE 100, as GlaxoSMithKline, Smith & Nephew and Alliance Unichem suffered falls by close of business in London.

The benchmark FTSE 100 ended this week down 1.8 points to 4,570 despite gains made by software maker Sage Group and HSBC.

Key trading on the London Stock Exchange is being driven in the main by software and technology firms this morning after Microsoft Corporation yesterday revealed its earnings will beat forecasts next year.

The benchmark FTSE 100 index has shed around seven points within the first hour of trading to 4,533, after stocks continued slipping.