FTSE 100 rises despite caution over protests

The London markets closed in the green despite coming under pressure from ChinaHong Kong tensions and a tepid opening in the US.

The FTSE 100 hit its latest two-month high as traders remained optimistic despite the US revealing worse-thanpredicted jobless figures.

London’s top flight closed 74.54 points higher at 6,218.79p at the end of trading yesterday.

HSBC and Standard Chartered slipped lower as finance firms were weighed down by concerns over the latest wave of pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.

The German Dax increased by 1.06%, while the French Cac moved 1.76% higher.

Across the Atlantic, the Dow Jones made marginal gains despite new figures revealing that the US economy contracted by 5% in the first quarter.

However, the gains were more muted that predicted as tensions in Hong Kong also caused caution among traders.

Sterling nudged higher despite Michael Saunders of the Bank of England, saying the bank does not have much wiggle room in terms of monetary policy. The value of the pound rose 0.52% versus the US dollar at 1.232, and was up 0.01% against the euro at 1.114.

The price of a barrel of Brent crude oil increased 3.26% to 35.21 US dollars.

The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were M&G, up 10p at 150p, Burberry, up 103.5p at 1,583.5p, Evraz, up 17.9p at 290.7p, and Melrose, up 7.2p at 125.85p. The biggest fallers were Rolls-Royce, down 27.1p at 319p, Standard Chartered, down 19.3p at 392.1p, Meggitt, down 9.8p at 295p, and HSBC, down 12.25p at 384.35p.