Stocks and sterling enjoy positive day

The London markets nudged higher despite a decline in European trading sentiment after the EU’S 750 billion euro rescue package had sparked early positivity.

US trading was also bolstered by a significant retreat in US Covid-19 cases, but Europe’s key markets nevertheless cooled after traders took stock of the eurozone funding deal.

The FTSE 100 closed 8.21 points higher at 6,269.73p at the end of trading yesterday.

Meanwhile, sterling jumped higher on trading excitement ahead of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s arrival in London, and the potential US-UK trade talks that might follow.

The pound rose 0.57% versus the US dollar at 1.273 and was up 0.17% against the euro at 1.108.

Across the Atlantic, the Dow Jones soared after it was revealed that Monday saw just shy of 60,000 new Covid-19 cases in the US, highlighting a major improvement.

The major European markets missed intra-day highs after a storming opening.

The German Dax increased by 0.94%, while the French Cac moved 0.23% higher.

The price of oil hit its highest level since early March as the price of a barrel of Brent crude oil increased by 2.96% to 44.5 US dollars.

The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Hargreaves Lansdown, up 161p at 1,750p, Rolls-royce, up 20.8p at 285.6p, BP, up 12.75p at 315.95p, and Whitbread, up 85p at 2,365p.

The biggest fallers were GVC, down 102p at 770p, Persimmon, down 87p at 2,517p, Avast, down 19.5p at 577p, and Astrazeneca, down 272p at 9,048p.