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FTSE 100 Biggest Weekly Gain Since 2011

FTSE 100 Biggest Weekly Gain Since 2011
FTSE 100 Biggest Weekly Gain Since 2011

The London market had its eighth straight day of gains, with Glencore leading the way after it said it was cutting its zinc output, BBC reported. Shares in Glencore jumped 7% on the news, and other miners also gained with Anglo American up 7.2%. The FTSE 100 index was up 41.34 points, or 0.65%, at 6,416.16. That makes a gain of about 4.5% for the week—biggest since a 7.5% jump in December 2011. Mining shares have been under pressure for some time because of declining commodity prices, but Glencore’s action sent zinc prices up 6%. Sentiment among investors had been helped by the minutes of the US Federal Reserve’s latest meeting, which analysts interpreted as indicating the US central bank is not in a hurry to raise rates. The Fed minutes revealed it believed that the US economy could have coped with an interest rate rise at its September meeting. However, it decided it was “prudent to wait” for more information before raising rates from near zero. Shares in Lloyds rose 1.2% to 77.21p. The UK government announced on Friday it had sold another 1% stake in Lloyds Banking Group, taking its stake in the bank to below 11%. On the currency markets, the pound weakened after the release of data showing a sharp fall in construction output during August and a wider than expected trade deficit. Against the dollar, the pound was 0.19% lower at $1.5318 and it fell 1% against the euro to €1.3476.

Financialtribune.com