London’s FTSE 100 edges higher as miners rally on record copper prices

FTSE 100 up 0.3%; FTSE 250 up 0.1% Miners gain as copper prices hit record high, boosting FTSE 100 Diageo extends slide to second day (Updates to market close) Dec 23 (Reuters) - London’s FTSE 100 ended higher on Tuesday, supported by gains in shares of banks and miners amid thin trading volume ahead of the Christmas break. The UK’s blue-chip FTSE 100 (.FTSE) closed 0.3% higher, extending its upward momentum from last week after the Bank of England’s 25-basis-point interest rate cut pushed the index to a five-week high. The domestically focussed midcap FTSE 250 (.FTMC) index added 0.1%. Trading volumes typically decrease during the holiday-shortened week. Markets will close early on Wednesday, and remain shut on Thursday for Christmas Day and on Friday for Boxing Day. Miners Anglo American (AAL.L) rose 2.6% along with Antofagasta (ANTO.L) and Rio Tinto (RIO.L) , adding 1.8% and 1.1%, respectively, as copper prices surged to a record high, crossing the $12,000 mark. Anglo American also benefitted from Wells Fargo initiating coverage with an equal weight rating and a target price of $17. Lenders HSBC (HSBA.L) and Barclays (BARC.L) added 0.7% and 0.8%, respectively. Miners and financial stocks, along with defence stocks, were the biggest drivers of the FTSE 100’s gains this year, which is up 16% year-to-date. Similarly, pan-European STOXX 600 (.STOXX) and Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index (.SPX) have also gained about 16% each so far. Healthcare stocks (.FTNMX201030) climbed 0.4% in the session, mirroring gains in European peers, after heavyweight Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO) clinched the U.S. approval of its weight-loss pill. Metlen Energy and Metals (MTLN.L) was up after the real estate investment trust completed a renewables transaction in Chile. Weighing on the FTSE 100 index, Diageo (DGE.L) dropped 1.8%, extending its slide to a second session, while Compass Group (CPG.L) fell 1.2%.