The prospect of takeover news involving many more of London's FTSE 100 stocks, as well as others, on both the buy and sell side, saw the British market make rapid progress yesterday. But while leaders retreated quite sharply from their best levels, amid flurries of profit-taking and worries about the eventual outcome of some of the takeover stories, the second and third-ranking stocks grew in confidence.

The FTSE 100 finished comfortably in the black, up 22.0 at 6,533.6. However it was well short of its best of the day, 6,574.6. Turnover in equities continued at recent exceptionally high levels, reaching 1.91 billion shares.