LONDON: Britain's top share index rallied on Friday as commodity-related stocks rebounded, with investors focused on a US jobs report due later in the day.
Energy shares gained 1.8 percent and mining shares 1.6 percent as oil and copper prices rose.
Brent crude climbed above $50 a barrel to near seven-month highs, despite an OPEC meeting that produced no agreement on a supply ceiling. Investors took heart from Saudi Arabia's pledge not to flood the market and from a decline in US crude supply .
Oil majors BP and Shell were up 2.4 percent and 1.4 percent respectively.
"The perkiness of its commodity sector (is) the main driver of growth this Friday... despite another display of OPEC's ineffectiveness on Thursday," Connor Campbell, financial analyst at Spreadex, said in a note. Britain's FTSE 100 was up 60.51 points, or 1 percent, at 6,246.12 by 1056 GMT, set for its biggest gain in more than a week.
The rise took it through several moving-average levels, which traders said signalled technical strength.
"The FTSE is gathering positive momentum after having broken the 200-hour moving average on the upside at the open," said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, a market analyst at London Capital Group.
Traders were focussed on the US non-farm payrolls report, due at 1230 GMT. Expectations are that 164,000 jobs were added in May, which may be enough to confirm a tightening labour market and push the Federal Reserve closer to raising interest rates soon.
Financial markets see a small chance of a rate increase at the Fed's June 14-15 policy meeting but are pricing in roughly a 59 percent probability at the July gathering.
UK housebuilders were the biggest losers, with Barratt Developments, Taylor Wimpey and Persimmon all down 0.5 to 1.2 percent.
Analysts cited ongoing concern about Britain's referendum on whether to leave the European Union. Marks & Spencer retreated 0.3 percent after JPMorgan cut the retailer to "underweight" from "neutral".
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