Another burst of pre-Christmas buying saw London's equity market continue to confound the pessimists and finish the week in fine fettle.

The latest strength came in spite of continuing concerns about the situation in the Middle East, where US and British forces launched a second series of air strikes against Iraq.

Markets around the globe once again seemed to shrug aside the process of impeaching US President Bill Clinton.

Dealers reported renewed keen institutional support for domestic equities.

However, one sales trader warned that sentiment could turn on a sixpence, especially if events in the Middle East escalated or if the Clinton impeachment process looked like succeeding.

Dealers pointed to the relatively good turnover levels in the market throughout a week which had been expected to see activity dropping away as the holiday period loomed.