The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were AstraZeneca, down 124.00p at 10,312p, British American Tobacco, down 60.00p at 3,813.00p, Endeavour Mining, down 60.00p at 2,172.00p, InterContinental Hotels, down 48.91p at 8,555.09p, and Anglo American, down 28.00p at 2,197.00p.

Britain's unemployment rate rose to 4.7% in the March to May quarter, according to the Office for National Statistics — higher than economists had expected.

The consensus forecasts are for the unemployment rate to remain at 4.6% for May (some economists expect it to rise to 4.7%), while average pay growth eases to 4.9% from 5.3%, excluding bonuses. June payrolls are estimated to drop by 41K, after a 109K fall in May, that many economists expect to be revised to a smaller decline.

The UK unemployment rate today increased to 4.7%, the highest level in four years. The figure compared with City forecasts for an unchanged rate of 4.6%. Growth in average earnings excluding bonuses slowed to 5% in the three months to May, compared with 5.3% in last month’s labour market report.

The stronger-than-expected US jobs figures today have decreased the chances of an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve later this month.

The Fed's Bernanke-era quantitative approach has provided steady economic growth. Click here to find out what remains central to the Fed's strategy.

What Is the Federal Reserve? The Federal Reserve is the central bank of the United States. Also known as “The Fed,” it is in charge of the country’s monetary

The FTSE 100 index closed up 46.09 points, 0.5%, at 8,972.64. The FTSE 250 ended up 164.57 points, 0.8%, at 21,766.43, and the AIM All-Share closed down 3.17 points, 0.4%, at 768.93.