Vodafone was among a handful of gainers on Thursday as the London market headed lower.

Its shares rallied 3.4 per cent to 139½p following solid results from US peer AT&T and on “buy” advice from Citigroup. Citi said results due next month from Vodafone should ease concerns. “Much of the bad news is in the market,” it said. “We argue results could focus the market’s mind on a return to growth and firm trading.”