The Footsie has started strongly, rising over 1% as the index climbs above the 5,900 level.The miners are in demand, with Lonmin, Rio Tinto, Xstrata and Kazakhmys heading higher.The latter announced this morning that it's proposed listing on the Hong Kong stock exchange will not involve the issue of any new shares. The board of Kazakhmys believes that issuing new shares at current share price levels would not create value for existing shareholders and the Hong Kong listing will, therefore, be by way of introduction.Banking stocks are also firmer, with Lloyds, Barclays and RBS making gains.On the FTSE 250, soft drinks group Britvic is in demand after first half sales jumped by a quarter, helped by a first-time contribution from its French division.Electronics and maintenance products supplier Electrocomponents is wanted after sales and profit came in slightly ahead of expectations on the back of strong sales growth in all geographic regions and online.Food ingredients group Tate & Lyle is edging higher after it managed to offset reduced selling prices for its SPLENDA Sucralose brand to grow sales by 7% in the year ended 31 March, while profits surged.---BC