FTSE 100 index rises

Strong energy stocks and miners drove Britain's top shares higher on Wednesday as investors welcomed results from Land Securities, ahead of a Federal Reserve announcement which could drive markets. Minutes from the latest Federal Open Market Committee meeting, due at 1800 GMT, may provide clues on the US central bank's exit strategy from QE2, a policy which has been credited with boosting stocks.
The FTSE 100 index ended up 62.49 points, or 1.1 percent, at 5,923.49. While the index managed to erase the previous session's 1.1-percent drop on the back of weak US housing data, concerns about the strength of the recovery lingered. "It just feels very lacklustre. There are very poor volumes. Everyone's just a bit worried about the economy. I can't see what's going to spur it on," Joe Rundle, head of trading at ETX Capital, said.
Rallying metals prices helped miners bounce back after a recent sell-off, with investor sentiment buoyant in advance of a heavily oversubscribed IPO from commodities trader Glencore. Eurasian Natural Resources was the best off, up 4.3 percent, as Citigroup lifted its rating on the company to "buy".
"Miners are firm today ahead of the Glencore IPO but it does start to feel as if everybody owns the market already and the marginal buyer has gone on holiday," said Lex van Dam, hedge fund manager at Hampstead Capital, which has $500 million of assets under management. "The next few days will be critical for the direction of the market over the next couple of months," he said. It was a similar story with integrated oil stocks, which rebounded from recent losses in tandem with crude, with BG Group leading the charge, up 3.1 percent, after an upgrade to "buy" from UBS.
"The macro environment will continue to be supportive for the European oil and gas sector and as a result we remain positive on the sector as a whole," UBS analyst Jon Rigby said. India-focused refiner and power generator Essar Energy added 3.3 percent, with traders citing an upgrade from Morgan Stanley as a catalyst after Tuesday's results. Land Securities was the standout FTSE 100 riser, up 6.4 percent, after the landlord and developer posted a double-digit rise in full-year net asset value, prompting Panmure Gordon to hike its target price for the stock.
Buyers came in for other real estate investment trusts. British Land, due to unveil full-year results on May 23, added 4.6 percent, Hammerson climbed 3.2 percent, and Capital Shopping Centres was 1.2 percent firmer. Elsewhere, British oil services and engineering group AMEC rose 1.8 percent after buying US engineer MACTEC for $280 million to boost its presence in North America in a deal that will be earnings enhancing this year. On the downside, Compass Group slipped 0.7 percent as investors locked in profits after a strong run-up by the stock as the caterer reported solid first-half results. Admiral, HSBC and Sainsbury all fell after going ex-dividend.