Britain's shares opened higher this morning as investors were cheered by a truce in the Middle East, lower oil prices and a strong performance for Asian stocks.
Early this morning the FTSE 100 index was up 32.9 points at 5,853.0 in a broad-based rally that saw 93 of the Britain's biggest shares trade higher.
British Airways featured among top gainers, up 1.3 per cent. Traders said it was benefiting from lower fuel costs, as well as a lowering of the UK security threat level to "severe" from "critical".
Banks and oil stocks accounted for about two-thirds of the rise, which traders said was largely due to the start of a truce between Israel and Hizbullah militants after nearly five weeks of fighting.
Despite the higher start, some market watchers said economic data due out over the coming days on wages, retail sales and inflation numbers from the United States was making investors wary.