Britain's FTSE-100 index snapped out of a tight range in the last hour of trading to close higher on Thursday following strong US economic figures, with advertiser WPP a major gainer after a positive broker note.
WPP closed up 3.3 percent after investment bank Lehman Brothers reiterated a "buy" note and said the shares should perform better after weakness in the last month. Dealers also reported positive meetings between WPP and analysts, although a WPP spokesman declined to comment.
The blue-chip index closed 25.0 points higher at 4,410.7, having struggled to hold a double-figure gain for most of the session. Traders said the index was boosted late in the day by news that the US Institute for Supply Management index rose to 62.5 in March from 61.4 in February, beating expectations of a fall to 60.
Traders said the FTSE-100 had been subdued for most of the day as investors began the quarter tentatively and braced for a key US jobs report on Friday, which will be watched closely for signs the US recovery is creating jobs.
"These US ISM numbers have come in rather better than expected and it's relieved the market of some of the fretfulness it was carrying ahead of tomorrow's jobs number. It just shows how nervy it all is," said one trader.
"There doesn't seem to be anything to really get us going higher at the minute but the nature of the game is that data can surprise you and if the (jobs) figure comes out much higher than expected you could be off to the races," said Andrew Hobson, a fund manager at Exeter Asset Management.
Shares in news and information firm Reuters Group Plc were up 3.4 percent on hopes for some optimistic comments from company executives at a briefing for investors and analysts on Friday.
Reuters is holding the London briefing to outline its new customer segments.
Among firm financial shares, insurer Aviva rose 2.9 percent to 543-1/2 pence after news investment bank Merrill Lynch raised its rating to "buy" from "neutral" and set a price target of 615 pence a share.
Mid-cap drug delivery firm Skyepharma closed up 9.8 percent after it reassured investors that it was continuing to work on a number of key deals. It said in January it expected to close deals early in 2004 which could involve total milestone payments of up to $200 million plus royalties on sales.
Mobile phone retailer Carphone Warehouse ended steady at 147-1/2p. The company confirmed after the close a report from an industry source that Deputy Chairman David Ross had sold 15 million shares for 147p each.
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