The FTSE 100, which has fallen almost 5pc since President Donald Trump said he would slap tariffs on more Chinese imports last week, recovered for the second session running and inched 0.2pc higher.

The more domestically focused midcap index rose 0.5pc by 0743 GMT, as the pound clawed back some of its recent losses that were spurred by worries over a no-deal Brexit.

"For this rebound to gain further momentum, we would need to see evidence of a softening of the rhetoric around trade, and a willingness on the part of both parties to dial back their current positions," CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson said.

Fund supermarket Hargreaves Lansdown, whose shares took a beating in June as nearly a quarter of its clients were exposed to Neil Woodford's suspended fund, advanced nearly 6pc after a forecast-beating rise in full-year assets.

"We think Hargreaves Lansdown has likely successfully defended its reputation with consumers," Jefferies analysts wrote.

Mining stocks, which have been hit by US-China trade tensions, snapped seven straight days of losses as nickel prices jumped amid worries that major supplier Indonesia could soon ban ore exports.

Gains in the blue-chip index were kept in check by a 5.5pc drop in telecom giant BT and a near 3pc fall in Lloyds , Britain's biggest mortgage lender, as the stocks traded ex-dividend.

On the mid-cap index, motor insurer Hastings slid 5.8pc to an eight-month low after its first-half profit missed market expectations.