FTSE 100 latest: Shares surge to new 2009 high
The FTSE 100 strode forward again today with miners bringing it close to levels not seen since before the collapse of Lehman Brothers last year.
Manic Monday: Shares are expected to rise again.
The weaker dollar and an upbeat assessment of future platinum values from miner Lonmin powered stocks in the sector by as much as 5%.
Overall the FTSE 100 closed 86.3 points higher at 5,382.7.
Lonmin led the way despite this morning posting an underlying loss per share of 59 cents for the fiscal year, compared with earnings per share of 336 cents last year.
Underlying earnings per share exclude one-off items and foreign exchange movements on taxes.
Lonmin shares rose 148p, or 9.3%, to 1740p. They were followed by rivals Randgold Resources, 227p, or 4.8%, higher at 4,924p, Xstrata, 79p, or 7.79%, higher at 1,093p, and Rio Tinto, 172p, or 5.5%, higher at 3,305p.
Keith Bowman, analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: 'What we're seeing is an indicator of the FTSE's weighting towards global prospects with the miners leading the way... and HSBC and Standard Chartered performing well for the banks.'
HSBC was 19.6p better at 761.2p and Standard Chartered rose 24.5p to 1,689.5p.
The upbeat mood was also seen in the building sector after Persimmon said sales trends continued to improve over the autumn.
The company's shares added 28.5p to 488.6p, with Barratt Developments ahead 5.8p at 146p and Bovis Homes 15.2p higher at 456p.
Also adding to optimism on the economic outlook, asking prices for homes in England and Wales were 1.6% higher in November than a year ago, the biggest annual rise since May 2008, property website Rightmove said.
Rolls-Royce joined the risers board after announcing Trent engine orders worth £1.2bn with Air China and Ethiopian Airlines. Shares were 15.8p higher at 485.7p, a gain of 3.36%.
The few early fallers today included Sainsbury's, down 3.2p in early trading, after the Times newspaper quoted industry figures showing £11m of spending switched to the supermarket's main competitors in the past 12 weeks. The supermarket chain later recovered to close 0.2p up at 342.9p.
In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose to 10,410.14 at the London close, having opened slightly lower at 10,267.47.
Oil prices rose a dollar to above $78 a barrel, regaining most of last week's 1.4% losses as the dollar drifted lower.
The pound strengthened and was worth $1.67 and €1.12 by late afternoon.
Companies reporting tomorrow
EasyJet has previously said it expects to post a pre-tax profit of between £25m and £50m. That was when it last updated the market in July. Analysts at broker Numis believe trading in the final quarter was encouraging, with passenger numbers up by 3.7%. It expects easyJet to report pre-tax profits towards the top of its guidance range at around £47m.
British Land is set to post its interim results after a turbulent few months that saw a boardroom exodus. The company has since lured two top property veterans, and investors will be looking for more information on the company's future strategy. It will be a crucial update for anyone invested in commercial property funds.
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