London close: Footsie gains on upbeat data, Fresnillo jumps

Upbeat data from home and abroad gave the FTSE 100 a lift on Tuesday, with precious metals group Fresnillo leading the heavyweight mining sector higher in London.Markets briefly dipped into negative territory in afternoon trade after US retail sales came in slightly below expectations, though a late rally ensured that the Footsie finished firmly in the blue.The FTSE 100 finished up 37.6 points (+0.57%) at 6,611.94.The German ZEW survey released this morning showed that the economic sentiment index jumped from 36.3 to 42 in August, well ahead of the consensus forecast for 39.9. The current situation index and sentiment index for the wider Eurozone also improved this month.UK housing data continues to point to a recovery in the market with prices rising in July for the fourth straight month. The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors' house-price index jumped from 21 in June to 36, representing the fastest growth since November 2006, helped by recent government measures to stimulus demand.Meanwhile, falling inflation also gave markets a boost with UK consumer prices rising at an annual rate of 2.8% in July, a slowdown from the 2.9% pace in June. UK Economist Martin Beck from Capital Economics said that this was "likely to presage the start of a sustained drop".FTSE 100: Fresnillo continues to reboundGold and silver miner Fresnillo rose strongly today as it continues to rebound after disappointing the market last week with its first-half results. Since then, the stock has jumped by over a quarter with UBS helping today after initiating coverage of the stock with a 'buy' rating. The broker said that Fresnillo is one of the world's lowest-cost primary silver producers "and we believe it will generate sustainable free cash flow even in a lower commodity price environment".Mining peers Rio Tinto, Antofagasta and Glencore Xstrata also finished higher.Airline operators IAG and easyJet were flying higher today after it was revealed that the US government has challenged a planned $11bn merger between US Airways and American Airlines' owner AMR Corp to create the world's largest airline on the back of competition concerns.Wood Group gained after Investec raised its target price to 900p from 800p, noting the company's strong performance in the first half on the back of demand for its services in engineering and operations and maintenance. G4S climbed following reports activist hedge fund Cevian Capital had become a major shareholder in the security firm.British life insurance investor Resolution gained after reporting an increase in profits for the first half after strong growth in the UK and tight cost control.Heading the other way was Anglo-South African financial services giant Old Mutual after Nomura downgraded the stock from 'buy' to 'neutral', saying it sees "better value elsewhere in the sector" after the positive reaction to last week's first-half results.Sector peer Prudential retreated after rising to an all-time high on Monday when it reported a jump in first-half profits.FTSE 100 - RisersFresnillo (FRES) 1,165.00p +5.62%International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 320.60p +2.69%Wood Group (John) (WG.) 915.50p +2.29%Rio Tinto (RIO) 3,263.00p +2.22%Antofagasta (ANTO) 979.00p +2.19%GKN (GKN) 353.20p +2.05%Glencore Xstrata (GLEN) 307.45p +2.01%Croda International (CRDA) 2,569.00p +1.98%BAE Systems (BA.) 449.10p +1.98%Weir Group (WEIR) 2,248.00p +1.95%FTSE 100 - FallersOld Mutual (OML) 196.10p -2.58%Prudential (PRU) 1,215.00p -1.38%ITV (ITV) 163.30p -1.33%Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,142.00p -1.30%William Hill (WMH) 440.10p -1.26%Standard Life (SL.) 365.70p -1.16%Vedanta Resources (VED) 1,253.00p -1.03%Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 378.40p -0.94%Travis Perkins (TPK) 1,622.00p -0.86%Capita (CPI) 1,000.00p -0.79%FTSE 250 - RisersHochschild Mining (HOC) 264.90p +14.03%Ted Baker (TED) 1,934.00p +5.97%Kenmare Resources (KMR) 31.53p +4.79%Synthomer (SYNT) 215.50p +4.61%NMC Health (NMC) 316.00p +4.29%Direct Line Insurance Group (DLG) 232.30p +3.94%Polymetal International (POLY) 755.50p +3.92%Wetherspoon (J.D.) (JDW) 740.50p +3.71%Centamin (DI) (CEY) 38.75p +3.50%Dialight (DIA) 1,266.00p +2.93%FTSE 250 - FallersMoneysupermarket.com Group (MONY) 166.00p -6.85%International Personal Finance (IPF) 599.50p -4.08%Michael Page International (MPI) 450.20p -4.01%Thomas Cook Group (TCG) 158.10p -2.65%IP Group (IPO) 141.00p -2.22%EnQuest (ENQ) 123.90p -2.21%888 Holdings (888) 160.50p -2.13%Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 110.10p -1.96%Catlin Group Ltd. (CGL) 486.20p -1.86%Man Group (EMG) 87.00p -1.86%BC