London close: Stocks pare losses ahead of FOMC minutes

Nervousness ahead of a Federal Reserve statement and disappointing trade figures from China weighed on markets on Wednesday, though a late rally on the FTSE 100 ensured that losses were only minor by the close.The FTSE 100 finished the session at 6,505, down just eight points (-0.12%) on the day and well above its intraday low of 6,472.Mining stocks were among the worst performers of the day today after Chinese exports and imports were both worse than expected in June, falling 3.1% and 0.7% year-on-year, respectively, meaning that the trade surplus of $27.12bn was slightly under forecasts."Given that these figures came on the back of a blanket downgrade of growth forecasts by the IMF yesterday, the surprise weakness in the latest batch of Chinese data has reinforced negative perceptions about the possibility of a much sharper-than-anticipated Chinese slowdown," said Senior Market Analyst Michael Hewson from CMC Markets.Meanwhile, investors were also preparing for the minutes of June's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting and subsequent press conference with Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke due later this evening. Analysts now widely expect the FOMC to begin scaling back its asset purchase programme as soon as September, given last Friday's jobs report for June which smashed expectations across the board."The minutes will be useful in hearing the thoughts of FOMC members, however it's worth noting that this took place before the release of June's jobs report," said Market Analyst Craig Erlam from Alpari. "Therefore, Bernanke's comments are likely to be followed much more closely for a more up-to-date view on the situation."FTSE 100: Burberry jumps after "standout" first quarterLuxury fashion brand Burberry saw its share price jump on Wednesday after saying that it was pleased with its first-quarter retail performance as underlying revenues rose 18%. Chief Executive Angela Ahrendts said that spring/summer 2013 was a 'standout' season.Petrofac was in demand after Citigroup named the stock as one of its top picks in the European oil services sector. Other oil stocks were also advancing today as crude prices pushed higher; Tullow Oil, Shell and BP finished firmly in positive territory.Supermarket peers Morrison and Tesco were up after Exane BNP Paribas upgraded its ratings on both stocks. Sainsbury, which was left at 'underperform', was under the weather today.Security solutions group G4S was in the red after Goldman Sachs maintained its 'sell' rating on the stock, saying that it sees downside risk to profit and margins. Quality testing firm Intertek was lower after Jefferies cut its target price and kept an 'underperform' recommendation, labelling the stock one of its "least preferred" names in the UK business and employment services sector.Mining stocks were among the worst performers today on the back of disappointing trade figures from Asian powerhouse China. Fresnillo, Randgold and Glencore Xstrata were lower, while Vedanta was also trading in the red after going ex-dividend. Also weighing on the sector was a research note from Goldman Sachs, which cut its target prices for a number of mining stocks, saying that negative earnings momentum and limited free cash flow continue to take the shine off the sector, as well as lower growth in China and weaker copper prices.FTSE 250: Burberry jumps after "standout" first quarterCar and bike parts retailer Halfords delivered a better-than-expected improvement in first-quarter sales, fuelled by strong demand for its cycling and car maintenance divisions. The stock was up over 11% by the close.Heading the other way was Dechra Pharmaceuticals as investors gave a cool reaction to the proposed disposal of the businesses within its Services Segment as the company looks to focus on high-margin, specialist veterinary pharmaceuticals products.FTSE 100 - RisersBurberry Group (BRBY) 1,509.00p +4.79%Tullow Oil (TLW) 1,090.00p +2.16%Tesco (TSCO) 349.50p +1.72%Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 282.00p +1.44%Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 1,302.00p +1.40%ITV (ITV) 152.10p +1.27%Reed Elsevier (REL) 797.50p +1.21%Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 2,271.50p +1.09%Bunzl (BNZL) 1,392.00p +1.09%Legal & General Group (LGEN) 187.60p +1.08%FTSE 100 - FallersFresnillo (FRES) 903.50p -4.99%Vedanta Resources (VED) 1,062.00p -2.92%Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 4,105.00p -2.56%Glencore Xstrata (GLEN) 257.65p -2.50%Imperial Tobacco Group (IMT) 2,285.00p -2.35%British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,482.00p -2.00%International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 269.80p -1.93%CRH (CRH) 1,331.00p -1.77%SABMiller (SAB) 3,203.00p -1.72%G4S (GFS) 225.60p -1.70%FTSE 250 - RisersHalfords Group (HFD) 354.50p +11.41%Countrywide (CWD) 577.00p +4.91%Soco International (SIA) 370.30p +4.84%RPC Group (RPC) 413.50p +4.03%Synthomer (SYNT) 196.80p +2.88%Fidelity China Special Situations (FCSS) 88.50p +2.43%Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,097.00p +2.24%Xaar (XAR) 867.00p +2.00%Keller Group (KLR) 1,073.00p +2.00%Kier Group (KIE) 1,377.00p +1.92%FTSE 250 - FallersHochschild Mining (HOC) 149.00p -12.35%African Barrick Gold (ABG) 98.35p -10.26%Bwin.party Digital Entertainment (BPTY) 122.20p -6.36%Dechra Pharmaceuticals (DPH) 700.00p -6.10%Polymetal International (POLY) 479.10p -5.32%Anite (AIE) 135.00p -4.59%Imagination Technologies Group (IMG) 274.90p -4.55%RPS Group (RPS) 221.00p -4.33%Spectris (SXS) 1,940.00p -4.24%Domino Printing Sciences (DNO) 645.00p -4.02%BC