Britain's leading shares were higher at today's midsession, buoyed by gains in telecoms stocks BT and Vodafone, together with stronger banks, while steelmaker Corus was up on disposal news.
But the FTSE's gains were capped by wary trade in U.S. stock index futures, which were pointing to a cautious open on Wall Street ahead of a key consumer confidence report.
By midday, the FTSE 100 benchmark index was up 30.3 points, or 0.7 per cent, at 4,358.8, retreating from an earlier high at 4,382.3 points. Volume was a fairly light 810 million shares.
Telecoms accounted for around a quarter of the benchmark index's gains as sector giant Vodafone rose 3.1 per cent to 100.25 pence to trade above the psychologically important 100 pence level.
Shares in fixed-line company BT Group rallied 4.8 per cent, buoyed by an upgrade from investment bank Banc of America to "buy" from "market performer".
Analysts said a disappointing University of Michigan consumer sentiment index reading this afternoon could take the wind out of the FTSE's rally, as it would signal that the consumer spending boom, seen propping up the US economy, may weaken.
Corus added 2.4 per cent after it sold a stake in a Canadian aluminium smelter for $165 million, saying it still intends to sell its remaining aluminium assets before the end of the year.
Among technology stocks, software firm Sage Group rose 2.8 per cent, boosted by positive earnings news from Dell Computer.