FTSE:5,399.00 (+95.60) Mid-250:2,786.12 (+22.42) Small Cap:2,794.62 (+30.92 )

UK STOCKS climbed yesterday, as the benchmark FTSE 100 Index posted its biggest four-day gain since November 2008, on foot of German and French pledge to recapitalise banks.

The FTSE 100 rose 1.8 per cent and the broader FTSE All-Share Index also added 1.8 per cent.

Barclays, up 4.5 per cent, led banks higher, while Old Mutual, 5.1 per cent firmer, was best off among insurers.

On the second tier, however, emerging markets lender International Personal Finance sank nearly 9 per cent, as the market assumed that downbeat news from east European lender Erste would read across to IPF.

Premier Oil advanced 3.3 per cent to 372.4 pence after saying it began producing oil at Chim Sao. UBS raised the shares to “buy” and HSBC and Morgan Stanley upgraded them to “overweight”.

BP, Europe’s second-biggest oil producer, advanced 2.9 per cent to 405.15p as oil rose 3.2 per cent. Oil and gas engineering firm Apec gained 2.7 per cent to 852p. Royal Dutch Shell added 2.5 per cent.

Anglo American headed miners higher, up 3.7 per cent to 2,417p. Rio Tinto, the world’s second-biggest miner by output, rose 2.6 per cent to 3,247.5p.

Kazakhmys rose 3.4 per cent to 886.5p after Morgan Stanley said it picked the London-based Central Asian miner as a preferred copper miner. Antofagasta, the copper miner controlled by Chile’s richest family, the Luksics, rose 2.9 per cent to 1,094p.

Imagination Technologies was up 3.2 per cent to 428.4p after JPMorgan Chase named the computer chip technology firm its top European semi-conductor pick. ARM Holdings, which designs chips for Apple’s iPhone, gained 6.6 per cent to 591p.

Burberry Group, the UK’s largest luxury-goods maker, rose 1.7 per cent.

Sportingbet dropped 19 per cent to 37p and UK bookmaker Ladbrokes declined 0.8 per cent to 119.7p after Ladbrokes said talks with Sportingbet have been “mutually terminated”.

In a separate statement, Sportingbet said it was not in discussions with any other party about a possible offer.

Michael Page International shed 1.6 per cent as the British recruiter commented on uncertainty in its markets in a third-quarter trading update, prompting Altium Securities to downgrade the stock to “hold”. – (Bloomberg/ Reuters)