Banks and commodity stocks have sent London’s top share index surging to a fresh two-and-a-half-year high.
The FTSE 100 Index added 38.8 points to 5930.4 as higher metal and oil prices boosted commodities.
Gains for banking giants such as Barclays and part-nationalised Royal Bank of Scotland also lifted the Footsie as the sector continued to recover from Friday’s blow from Lloyds after it highlighted the impact of its Irish debts.
Barclays advanced 7.1p to 268.1p and RBS rose 0.9p to 39.2p.
But thin trading volumes in the lead up to the Christmas holidays was also thought to be behind the volatility.
The surge came despite news of more woes in the retail sector after small cap stock Alexon, the owner of Ann Harvey, Dash and Kaliko brands, issued a profits warning following snow-hit sales.
Blue chip retail giants such as Marks & Spencer and Next fell into the red on Monday as snow and ice have been keeping shoppers away from stores in the busiest week of the year.
Alexon’s news of a 20% plunge in sales over the past few weeks confirmed the nightmare facing stores and sent its shares down 17% or 2.5p to 12.5p.
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