London's FTSE 100 shrugged off some disappointing retail sector updates to edge higher in early trading.
The blue-chip index rose 10 points to 8,261 as miners had a good day led by Anglo American and Rio Tinto, which offset weakness among the retailers that seems to be all about the 2025 trading outlook.
Tesco is down 2%, even though it reported its best Christmas ever. Marks & Spencer has dropped 7% notwithstanding sales over Christmas rising by 6.4%. Bakery Greggs is down 9% after some cautious comments about footfall despite sales in 2024 cruising past £2 billion. B&M European Value meanwhile is off 8% after lower-than-expected sales outweighed a £150 million special dividend.
Finally, the pound has sunk to its lowest level against the dollar for more than a year due to worries about the direction of US interest rates.