UK stocks edged higher on Tuesday, despite confirmation of the UK's first deflation since the 1960s. Sector-wise, losses made by miners and telecommunications were offset by strong results from real estate, construction and insurance stocks.As of 2:40GMT, the FTSE 100 was trading 28 points higher at 6996.87.BHP Billiton topped the fallers, extending Monday's losses, which were driven by the disappointing Australian debut of its spin-off South32. HSBC downgraded its rating on the stock to 'reduce' from 'hold', while JP Morgan cut its target price for the stock to 1,425p from 1,600p.Sector Peer Rio Tinto was also making losses, despite reaching an agreement with Mongolia to resume work on a delayed $5bn underground copper mine, which is expected to bolster the growth prospects for both the company and the country.Negative broker comment also provided a drag on global lender HSBC, with Bernstein Research reducing its rating to 'market perform' from 'outperform'.Vodafone plummeted despite reporting a return to growth in the fourth quarter. Final results showed organic service revenue up 0.1%, beating consensus forecasts for the final three months of the year. The telecoms giant's 7% decline in EBITDA, though expected, disappointed analysts who had hoped for more of a boost from the first year of its Project Spring programme.Property developer Land Securities was a big riser after it has raised its dividend by 3.7% to 31.85p following a surge in demand for commercial property which has boosted its adjusted net asset value 27.6% to 1,293p.Anglo-Dutch publishing group Reed Elsevier was making gains following an upgrade from Goldman Sachs to 'buy' from 'neutral'. RisersCoca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 1,469.00p +3.52%Land Securities Group (LAND) 1,352.00p +3.13%Intu Properties (INTU) 351.70p +2.42%Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 2,121.00p +2.41%Shire Plc (SHP) 5,500.00p +2.33%GKN (GKN) 365.70p +2.32%Old Mutual (OML) 235.10p +2.31%St James's Place (STJ) 957.50p +2.30%Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 191.50p +2.30%Experian (EXPN) 1,253.00p +2.29%FallersBHP Billiton (BLT) 1,407.00p -3.83%Vodafone Group (VOD) 226.95p -3.05%Glencore (GLEN) 288.40p -2.90%Rio Tinto (RIO) 2,856.00p -2.36%Fresnillo (FRES) 774.50p -2.27%Anglo American (AAL) 1,056.50p -1.90%Antofagasta (ANTO) 778.50p -1.83%Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 4,847.00p -1.24%Weir Group (WEIR) 1,921.00p -0.77%Sports Direct International (SPD) 660.00p -0.68%
Last checked at 
