FTSE ends up as falling oil eases inflation worry

By Atul Prakash LONDON (Reuters) - The top share index closed 0.2 percent higher on Friday as a sharp drop in crude prices eased inflation concerns and cheered banks and retailers, outweighing negative miners that tracked falling metal prices. The commodity-heavy FTSE 100 .FTSE ended up 11.7 points at 5,489.2, closing the week about 2.5 percent higher. The index remains down 15 percent so far this year. Crude oil prices fell more than 3 percent to around $116 a barrel, down about 20 percent from a record high above $147 nearly a month ago and raising hopes that lower inflation would stimulate spending by consumers and business. "The market is in the right direction, underpinned by a downturn in the oil price ... But there is still a lot of nervousness," said Keith Bowman, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. "We are,... [read full story]