[contingencies]

8 hours a day minus an hour for lunch is 7 hours .. perhaps exchange operations close an before the daily close of business? Wouldn't surprise me, and that's ~5.9375 (6 to be precise). Then of course there's bank holidays and weekends...

[marianov]

The goverment has declared an unprecedented number of holidays last year (i.e. moving holidays from weekends to mondays, declaring "bridge" holidays when a holiday happens on tuesday or thursday, 2012 had 5 more than 2011). 2013 will have 17 bank holidays.