FTSE inches down

The FTSE 100 Index finished slightly down today as speculation over a Chinese interest rate rise dented shares in miners.

The market, which fluctuated and lacked direction for most of the day, finally closed just 1.1 point lower at 5881.1.

Miners Antofagasta and Fresnillo were the two biggest fallers, down 32p at 1528p and 30p at 1525p respectively.

Their stocks fell as commodity prices wavered on talk that China might hike its interest rates tomorrow, dampening demand for metals.

BP was also one of the day's biggest fallers. It slid 1.4% as investor fears over the cost of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill resurfaced in the wake of legal action by the US government.

The energy giant, which faces penalties as high as $21bn (€15.9bn) if found fully liable for damages in the lawsuit, fell 6.5p to 470p, reversing strong gains seen earlier in the week.

With BP already committed to a separate compensation fund of $20bn (€15.13bn), the City is concerned about the impact of higher costs on the likely restart of dividend payments at the start of next year.

The blue-chip risers board was topped by outsourcing firm Serco after it reassured investors that it remained on track to meet profits forecasts. With the company also confident in its medium to long-term prospects, shares rose 23.5p to 597p.

In a quiet session for corporate news, Sports Direct International jumped 3.1% in the FTSE 250 Index after it posted a sharp rise in half-year profits to just over £100m (€118.1m) and said it had cut debt by 25%.

The performance, which was driven by a 10% rise in revenues from its retail estate, was slightly better than City expectations and triggered a share price improvement of 4.5p to 150.5p.

Elsewhere in the retail sector, shares in Laura Ashley jumped 14.7% as it said it was on track to beat forecasts after efforts to reshape its store portfolio offset slower sales growth in recent weeks. The stock was up 2.5p to 19.5p.

Other risers included Taylor Wimpey, which lifted 0.7p to 28.1p following yesterday's announcement that the refinancing of its debt facilities had been completed ahead of schedule.

The pound was up against both euro and the US dollar after the ONS revealed steady retail growth in November. It was worth 1.18 euros after the single currency weakened on the back of rising yields for Spanish bonds. It also rose against the dollar, despite the US Labor Department reporting a drop in first-time claims for unemployment benefits during the past week. The pound was worth 1.56 US dollars.

The biggest Footsie risers were Serco up 23.5p to 597p, GKN ahead 6.3p at 213.8p, Pearson up 19p to 1024p and Capita Group up 12.5 to 690p.

The biggest Footsie fallers were Antofagasta down 32p to 1528p, Fresnillo off 30p at 4525p, Weir Group down 31p to 1770p and Schroders down 23p to 1387p.