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London Market Report London Market Report
(about 3 hours later)
(Open): The benchmark FTSE 100 index opened slightly lower on Monday, with the main share index down 14 points, or 0.2%, at 6,029.1 (Noon): The benchmark FTSE 100 index was lower at midday, down 0.25%, or 16.7 points, at 6,761.1.
Shares in the British medical company Smith and Nephew were the biggest fallers on the index, down 3.36%. Shares in BT and Persimmon were the biggest fallers while mining companies Fresnillo and Glencore were higher.
That follows a decision by a potential suitor, American firm Medtronic, to buy its rival Covidien instead. Earlier the pound briefly hit its highest level in five years, reaching $1.7011.
Commodity related shares were the best performers - with Randgold Resources and Petrofac rising more than 1%. It has been rising since last Thursday when the Bank of England's Governor Mark Carney said a rate rise could come sooner than markets were expecting.
Earlier the pound briefly hit its highest level in five years against the dollar, reaching $1.7011, as the boost continued from comments made last week by the Bank of England Governor Mark Carney that a UK rate rise could come as soon as this year. "All of these remarks do suggest the tide is turning at the Bank of England," said Jane Foley, a currency strategist with Rabobank in London. "Whether that means that a hike by the end of this year is on the cards, we are not sure."
She added that Bank of England minutes, released later this week, should go some way to indicating when a rate rise might come.
Shares in the British medical company Smith and Nephew fell 1.4% after a decision by a potential suitor, American firm Medtronic, to buy its rival Covidien instead.