Britain's FTSE boosted by earnings ahead of election

Britain's top share index edged higher on Wednesday, boosted by reassuring results which lifted the tobacco and engineering sectors, although activity was muted ahead of Thursday's national elections. Imperial Tobacco Group rose 1.8 percent after it stood by its outlook for the remainder of the year, despite reporting a 5 percent decline in underlying tobacco sales volume in the first half of its fiscal year. Peer British American Tobacco rose 0.6 percent after Imperial Tobacco's results. Imperi