The FTSE 100, which spent most of the day in the green, closed down 0.2 per cent at 7,218.6, while the FTSE 250 fell by 0.4 per cent to 96.53 at 22,550.69.
British employers added 257,000 staff to their payrolls in November, adding to signs that the labour market withstood the end of the furlough scheme, Office for National Statistics data reveals.
The unemployment rate decreased by 0.4 percentage points on the quarter to a 16-month low of 4.2 per cent.
In company news, BT’s largest shareholder has increased his stake in the telecoms giant from 12.1 per cent to 18 per cent, prompting fears the company could be ripe for a takeover.
Elsewhere, the Government is under intense pressure to outlaw fraudulent paid-for adverts in forthcoming legislation after MPs backed the move in a new report.
A powerful joint committee issued a report today calling for paid-for adverts to be covered in the Online Safety Bill, to force tech firms to stop them appearing on their sites.
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November’s employment increase was the biggest since records began in 2014
