LONDON: London shares rose on Tuesday as Prime Minister Boris Johnson took more steps to relax the country's coronavirus lockdown, while a smaller than expected decline in Britain's private sector raised hopes for the economy's recovery from a pandemic-induced slump.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 closed up 1.2%, boosted by financial, energy and mining stocks. The mid-cap FTSE 250 ended 0.5% higher, but cut some session gains as home builders weighed.
The moves were in-line with global markets which cheered confirmation that the US-China trade pact was "fully intact", after earlier confusing statements from the White House. Declining pace of contraction in US business activity and similar data from the euro zone further bolstered sentiment.
A raft of global stimulus and the easing of coronavirus-induced lockdowns have powered the FTSE 100 following its crash to an eight-year low in March, with the export-heavy index now only down about 16% on the year.
Among individual stocks, Hikma Pharmaceuticals slumped 5.6% on news that Boehringer Ingelheim, a major shareholder in the drugmaker, was selling most of its nearly 1-billion-pound ($1.25 billion) stake.
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