London close: Weak finish to strong year

31st Dec 2010 12:44

The FTSE 100 finished the year well below the 6,000 point barrier, having briefly surpassed that psychologically important barrier just ahead of Christmas, but still closed with strong gains for the full year.The top share index has climbed by 25% from its lows earlier in the year, to hit levels not seen since before the crash of US investment bank Lehman Brothers at the end of 2008.Company news was thin on the ground, but there was some interest in the mining sector.Among the fallers were the mining duo BHP Billiton and Anglo American, which have declared force majeure on Australian coal operations due to rainfall disruption. However Mexican silver miner Fresnillo was higher for the second day in a row as the precious metal adds to gains having hit 30-year highs yesterday.In economic news, meanwhile, house prices rose against expectations in December. Building society Nationwide said the average price of a home rose by 0.4%, following a 0.3% drop the previous month.A very happy New Year to all our readers from ShareCast!