Not even a decline in Vodafone, one of the largest stocks on the index was enough to prevent the FTSE from recording fresh four year highs in London yesterday.

The FTSE 100 closed 21.8 points higher, 0.4 per cent, at 5,429.7. The FTSE 250, meanwhile closed at another all-time high, 28.6 points higher or 0.4 per cent, at 7,930.2. Volume was an average 2.5bn shares.