Footsie sees day’s gains pared back

The FTSE 100 closed higher as dovish comments from the Federal Reserve helped to bolster the European markets.

The index rose 15.61 points up at 7,508.7 although had retreated from higher gains earlier in the day,

The European markets were also buoyed by the news that a looser monetary policy could be on the horizon.

The German Dax increased by 0.26 per cent, while the French Cac rose by 0.03 per cent.

Sterling fell against the dollar as the chancellor revealed that the government accelerated borrowing in June to help balance its books.

Conor Campbell of Spreadex said sterling is also in for an “interesting time of it next week”.

“Tuesday sees the results of the Tory leadership race, with Jeremy Hunt or, more likely, Boris Johnson becoming prime minister on Wednesday,” he pointed out.

The market reacted positively as ITV confirmed it has inked an agreement with the BBC to launch the Britbox digital streaming service in the UK.

The broadcasters said Britbox, which they hope will counter competition from US giants such at Netflix, will cost “less than other streaming services”.

Shares in ITV closed up 0.8p at 110.2p. The owner of Upper Crust and Caffe Ritazza saw shares rise after posting like-for-like revenue growth in the three months to June, despite warning that sales were hit by the continued grounding of Boeing’s Max 737 planes.

The food service group saw shares jump by 20p to close at 701p.