FTSE halts losses after Nikkei climbs 5% overnight

UK blue chips made small gains in early trading after heavily sold-off Japanese shares ended a three-day rout to climb sharply overnight.

The Nikkei, which had dropped by around a fifth since last week's earthquake and tsunami, rebounded overnight as investors snapped up shares.

It jumped 5.68% to 9,094 points, with winners including car makers Toyota and Nissan, as well as financials.

The gains helped London get off to a positive start, with the FTSE 100 rising 11.43 points at opening, to 5,707 points

Among the winners were miners Xstrata and Kazakhmys, up 2.7% and 2.5% respectively.

London firmed despite further losses in the US where the S&P 500 shed a further 1.12%, closing down at 1,282 points.