FTSE sluggish after Wall Street losses

The FTSE 100 had a slow start to the week, down 0.32% or 18.43 points to 5,684.94, following mixed sessions in Asia and the US.

Mining shares were the biggest fallers after BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto announced the end of their proposed $116bn iron ore joint venture. Xstrata dropped 2.25% to £12.82, as Antofagasta fell 2.14% to £12.79 and Vedanta Resources declined 1.97% to £22.43. Meanwhile, National Grid led early morning risers, up 0.53% to 572.5p, followed by Resolution Ltd, which advanced 0.47% to 255p. On Wall Street on Friday, the Dow Jones closed down 0.29% or 31.79 points to 11, 062.78 after Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke's hints about a fresh round of fiscal stimulus hit blue chips. Disma...