On a day when investors were keen to take some profits, and when interest rate concerns were to the fore, there was still a smattering of takeover talk to keep dealers entertained.
The late runner was the London Stock Exchange itself, when possible predator Nasdaq announced it had bought another 3.5m shares at 1248p each. Part of this stake came from Scottish Widows which sold 2.5m of its holding, leaving it with 8.5m shares, while UBS is also believed to have been a seller.
Nasdaq has now taken its stake from 18.7% to 24% and, despite having dropped plans for a bid in March after a negative response from its target, it is now in a strong position to pounce again. Under takeover rules it has to wait until September if it wants to bid again, unless another party comes in.
But having built up what is virtually a blocking stake, Nasdaq pretty much holds the upper hand. It can wait to bid again, do nothing, or sell its stake at a profit if anyone else - perhaps US rival the New York Stock Exchange - decides to make an offer. Whatever the outcome, news of the Nasdaq move sent the LSE shares 12p higher to 1256.5p.
Another company attracting attention was Prudential. Its shares rose 8p to 660p on speculation it could be a bid target again. An approach from Aviva this year came to nought, but French rival Axa was always said to be in the background for a bid. A revival of that rumour - plus talk of US interest - was swirling around again yesterday, with a suggestion of 800p as a takeout price.
The FTSE 100 slipped 22.2 points to 6083.4. It came off its worst levels after the Bank of England unveiled its monthly inflation report. Reading the runes, economists believe the report indicates inflation will stay on target in the next two years if interest rates edge up slowly from now on. But the general feeling is there will be no rise this year. Still, there was some caution around ahead of last night's decision from the US Federal Reserve on American rates.
Steelmaker Corus was volatile - nearly 94m shares were traded with the price rising around 2% in early trading before the shares fell back to close 0.5p higher at 92.5p. There were some hefty trades, with chunks of 16m, 10.9m and 5m changing hands at 93.25p. The company gave an upbeat statement on Tuesday ahead of its first-quarter results at the end of this month, and yesterday Deutsche Bank raised its price target for the company from 100p to 110p.
Corus also announced yesterday it was selling its 50% stake in a Portuguese joint venture for €25m (£17m).
Retailers were also to the fore. DSG International - formerly Dixons - was the biggest riser in the FTSE 100, up 13.5p to 207.75p after saying it would beat most full-year forecasts after a stronger second half. Products such as flat-screen televisions, laptops, iPods and satellite navigation systems gave a boost to sales, leading brokers including WestLB and Panmure to raise their recommendations on the company.
Boots added 27.5p to 731.5p after Morgan Stanley upgraded its recommendations, while its merger partner Alliance Unichem rose 48.5p to 930p. The Competition Appeal Tribunal has rejected a request from rival Celesio, which owns Lloyd's Chemists, to look again at the proposed link up between the two. Boots and Alliance expect to sort out final undertakings related to their merger with the Office of Fair Trading shortly, with the tie-up taking effect on July 31.
Approval of its new hip implant in the US lifted medical equipment group Smith & Nephew 4.55% higher to 460p.
Among the fallers, investment group Old Mutual slipped 6.5p to 193.25p after first-quarter sales were in line with expectations - the City had been expecting more from the company after its takeover of Sweden's Skandia.
Barclays lost 6p to 668p as Williams de Broe issued a hefty note which concluded by advising the bank's shares should be sold.
Media group Emap was down 13.5p to 873p. The company is believed to have shortlisted six possible buyers of its French business - trade buyers Mondadori, RCS Media and Prisma Pressa and private equity firms Apax, Candover and Eurazeo. The highest bid is reported to be from a trade buyer, with a deal expected to be completed by September.
Shipbroker Clarkson was 39.5p better at 894p after an upbeat assessment from Panmure Gordon which put a 1300p target on the shares. The analysts say the company's once-impenetrable results are now much more transparent, and so better understood. Clarkson is looking to set up a hedge fund with funds under management of up to $300m. That could generate fee income of £3.4m which is not included in current forecasts.
Healthcare software group iSoft, which has been through the wringer recently, recovered some ground yesterday and added 4.25p to 95.5p, making it the biggest riser in the FTSE 250.
Finally China MediTech - the first Chinese medicine company to float in London - unveiled more details of its plans to list on AIM. Its shares have been priced at 275p each, valuing the company at £141m. It hopes to raise £40m to finance drug research and development. Dealing is expected to start on May 19.
New environment
Keep an eye on environmental group Virotec International. The company provides solutions for wastewater treatment and is also involved in the mining sector, although this has been scaled down in recent times. Its shares suffered a setback earlier this year when a contract it had expected from the Pennsylvanian Department of Transportation failed to materialise. Since then there has been a recovery and chief executive John Catling has shown his faith by raising his stake in the business. Yesterday Virotec added 1.5p to 20.25p - an 8% rise - as it announced a joint venture with US firm Wade Craven. Between them the two companies have now achieved regulatory approval for several of Virotec's products in states including North and South Carolina, Georgia and Virginia.