London close: Santa Rally continues as UK stocks rise for sixth straight day

UK stocks rose again on Tuesday as the Santa Rally continued into its sixth straight day, with markets boosted by some upbeat economic data from the States.

Third-quarter US annualised gross domestic product (GDP) growth was revised to 5% from an initial estimate of 3.9%, representing the strongest rate of expansion since 2003.

"The jump in US GDP driven by consumer spending is another bit of evidence demonstrating the benefit of lower oil prices to the global economy," said analyst Jasper Lawler from CMC Markets UK.

The FTSE 100 finished 0.3% higher at 6,598 by the end of the session, its highest close since 8 December, helped by energy stocks as crude prices rebounded.

In other US economic data, the University of Michigan's consumer-confidence index and personal spending figures came in better than expectations, though new-home sales and durable goods orders missed forecasts slightly.

Closer to home, the FTSE 100 pulled back from its intraday high early on after UK GDP growth was surprisingly revised lower. While quarter-on-quarter growth was confirmed at 0.7% for the third quarter, the annual rate of expansion was revised to 2.6% from the initial estimate of 3%.

News from Greece was also limiting gains across European markets after Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras failed to garner enough support for his presidential candidate in a second round of voting. Parliamentarians will now be called on to vote for a third and final time on 29 December.

Energy stocks jump

Oil and gas producers such as BP, Tullow Oil, Shell and Premier Oil were all performing well by the end of the session as Brent crude advanced 1.2% to $60.82 a barrel. Energy services companies such as Petrofac, Hunting and Weir Group also saw shares rise.

Retailers were also providing a lift with Wm Morrison, Tesco and Sports Direct putting in decent gains.

Thorntons was a heavy faller, dropping over 22% after warning of a "significant reduction" in orders from major supermarkets and a problem with its warehouse distribution. Earnings for the full year are now expected to be "below those achieved for the last financial year”.

Cameroon-focused oil explorer Bowleven jumped after being allowed extra time for the completion of the farm-out agreement over its Etinde project as it continued to sweat over presidential approval.

Market Movers
techMARK 2,953.95 -0.19%
FTSE 100 6,598.18 +0.33%
FTSE 250 16,094.23 +0.64%

FTSE 100 - Risers
Tullow Oil (TLW) 419.70p +3.12%
CRH (CRH) 1,559.00p +3.11%
Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 180.40p +2.50%
Smiths Group (SMIN) 1,108.00p +2.40%
ARM Holdings (ARM) 998.00p +2.31%
Sports Direct International (SPD) 712.00p +2.30%
Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 4,240.00p +2.17%
Weir Group (WEIR) 1,912.00p +2.03%
Tesco (TSCO) 184.60p +1.99%
Centrica (CNA) 282.50p +1.88%

FTSE 100 - Fallers
Shire Plc (SHP) 4,533.00p -2.81%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 5,200.00p -2.07%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 4,516.50p -1.88%
Smith & Nephew (SN.) 1,089.00p -1.71%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 459.00p -1.48%
Persimmon (PSN) 1,572.00p -1.32%
Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 134.70p -1.32%
Aggreko (AGK) 1,528.00p -0.84%
BG Group (BG.) 879.50p -0.74%
Ashtead Group (AHT) 1,169.00p -0.51%

FTSE 250 - Risers
Euromoney Institutional Investor (ERM) 1,125.00p +5.73%
Evraz (EVR) 149.20p +4.55%
Centamin (DI) (CEY) 60.15p +4.52%
RPS Group (RPS) 218.40p +4.40%
Workspace Group (WKP) 764.50p +4.37%
Serco Group (SRP) 163.10p +4.15%
Petra Diamonds Ltd.(DI) (PDL) 191.50p +4.08%
Premier Oil (PMO) 172.00p +3.61%
SIG (SHI) 171.30p +3.32%
PayPoint (PAY) 922.50p +3.30%

FTSE 250 - Fallers
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,985.00p -3.69%
Polymetal International (POLY) 555.50p -3.05%
Saga (SAGA) 151.00p -2.45%
BTG (BTG) 797.00p -2.03%
Greggs (GRG) 723.00p -1.97%
RPC Group (RPC) 509.50p -1.45%
Bank of Georgia Holdings (BGEO) 2,037.00p -1.45%
Big Yellow Group (BYG) 610.00p -1.37%
Genus (GNS) 1,269.00p -1.25%
Fisher (James) & Sons (FSJ) 1,159.00p -1.19%