Advancers

BHP, the biggest mining company in the world, added 2.1%. BHP said yesterday that demand for metals is strong and it may look for takeover targets. Rio Tinto, the third largest, gained 2.3%. Aluminum and zinc prices rose in London today and gold headed for a second straight monthly gain.
Oil companies Royal Dutch Shell and BP rose more than 1%, and shares in mining companies Xstrata and Antofagasta also traded more than 1% higher.

Sportingbet shares rose 4.3% on Thursday, as the online gambling company recovers from an 88% year-to-date share price decline on a ban in taking payments from the United States. Also, Prudential shares rose 1.2% after it was upgraded to buy from hold at Citigroup, saying that by 2010 it is free cash yield will be well above its U.K. peers, at 7.1% compared to 5.5%.

Decliners

Danone shares traded down 1.1% in Paris after a strong recent run. U.K.-headquartered home improvement retailer Kingfisher lost 2.1% after producing sales figures that showed continued weakness in U.K. operations.

Oil and gold

Crude oil for January delivery was at $62.40 a barrel, down 6 cents, in after-hours electronic trading on the NYME. Gold for immediate delivery in London rose as much as $1.73, or 0.3%, to $638.38 an ounce and in early trading was at $637.90.

Currencies

The U.S. dollar fell against other major currencies in European trading Thursday morning, dropping to its lowest level in 14 years against the British pound. The euro was quoted at $1.3190, up from $1.3156 late Wednesday. The British pound traded at $1.9558, up from $1.9462. The dollar bought 116.26 Japanese yen, down from 116.31.