FTSE 100 movers: Miners gain; United Utilities, Compass drop as they go ex-div

London’s FTSE 100 was up 0.9% to 6,315.42 in late afternoon trading, off its highs but still in the black amid hopes UK voters would opt to remain in the European Union.

Traders pointed out that volumes on the index were two-thirds lower than average, adding that this could be seen as a measure of market nervousness despite the positive tone.

Royal Dutch Shell was on the front foot as oil prices advanced. West Texas Intermediate was up 0.7% to $49.45 a barrel while Brent crude was 0.7% higher at $50.23.

Heavily-weighted mining stocks also put in a solid performance amid improved investor sentiment, with Antofagasta, Anglo American and Glencore all stronger.

Premier Inn and Costa Coffee owner Whitbread was also in the black after it said earlier in the week that there had been a slight improvement in sales in the first quarter of the year as the Costa shops bounced back from a slowdown in the preceding few months.

On the downside, Compass Group and United Utilities were in the red their stock went ex-dividend.

Elsewhere, RSA Insurance was giving back some gains after it rallied on Wednesday, when Barclays said it saw 15% upside in the stock following an encouraging meeting with some of the company’s management.

RSA's chief financial officer Scott Egan repeated the recent mantra that, while it is early days on the roadmap to its 2018 targets, the company is on track and is "focused intently on executing".

Risers

Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 1,879.00p 2.54%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 435.70p 2.52%
Anglo American (AAL) 686.10p 2.33%
Glencore (GLEN) 152.30p 2.32%
CRH (CRH) 2,081.00p 2.26%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSE) 2,710.00p 2.11%
Royal Dutch Shell 'A' (RDSA) 1,847.00p 2.02%
Intertek Group (ITRK) 3,204.00p 1.97%
Barclays (BARC) 185.45p 1.90%
Whitbread (WTB) 4,147.00p 1.89%

Fallers

Paddy Power Betfair (PPB) 8,740.00p -4.11%
United Utilities Group (UU.) 924.50p -3.40%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,109.00p -2.12%
Compass Group (CPG) 1,285.00p -1.23%
RSA Insurance Group (RSA) 478.20p -1.22%
Smith & Nephew (SN.) 1,152.00p -0.78%
Diageo (DGE) 1,828.50p -0.76%
Severn Trent (SVT) 2,223.00p -0.76%
National Grid (NG.) 976.50p -0.74%
Persimmon (PSN) 2,073.00p -0.62%