LONDON: Britain's top equity index climbed on Monday to set a new record high, breaking through last month's peak, as a rise in mining stocks and Intertek lifted the market.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 equity index rose as much as 0.3 percent to a record intraday high of 6,972.01 points. The index is up around 6 percent since the start of 2015.
"The FTSE is moving slowly towards 7,000 points. Momentum-wise, it's looking pretty positive, and you've got to keep running with it at the moment," said Hantec Markets analyst Richard Perry.
Intertek rose 3.6 percent, the best-performing FTSE 100 stock in percentage terms, after the product-testing company posted higher profits and revenues and raised its dividend.
Mining stocks such as Anglo American, Glencore and Rio Tinto also climbed higher to feature on the FTSE's list of best-performing stocks.
The mining sector was boosted after China, which is the world's biggest consumer of metals, cut interest rates over the weekend in order to support the world's second-largest economy as its momentum slows and deflation risks rise.
China's rate cut lifted the price of copper, while Glencore got a further boost after Credit Suisse raised its rating on Glencore to "outperform" from "neutral".
"Medium-term, we're still bullish, but we could see some profit-taking on the FTSE if it hits 7,000 points," said Thames Capital Markets' senior trader Gerren O'Neill.
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