Sector movers: ECB stimulus gives mining stocks a lift, gold rises

Confirmation of a massive bond-buying programme by the European Central Bank (ECB) was well-received by the market on Thursday, with mining stocks among the best performers as shares benefited from an increase in risk appetite.

The ECB unveiled a quantitative easing programme totalling €1.1trn, with the purchase of €60bn-worth of private and public securities each month until September 2016, slightly ahead of investors' expectations.

Gautum Batra, investment strategist at Signia Wealth, said the markets were "hoping for drastic action" from the ECB on Thursday and "already appear to be heartened" by the news. "This is a milestone announcement from the ECB and will go some way to support market sentiment," Batra said.

Meanwhile, Adam Chester, head of economic research and market strategy at Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, said the programme "represents an important step in helping to put the Eurozone economy on a firmer footing", and that equities "have given the decision a cautious welcome".

The FTSE 100, which hit a six-week high on Wednesday, was up a further 0.4% on Thursday following the announcement, with heavyweight miners such as Glencore, Anglo American, Vedanta Resources, BHP Billiton, Evraz and Rio Tinto all putting in decent gains.

Gold futures for February delivery were up 0.7% at $1,302.80 an ounce on the Comex in New York. Bullion was back above the $1,300 level after having surpassed that mark for the first time in five months earlier this week.

Top performing sectors so far today

Industrial Metals & Mining 1,668.37 +7.21%
Oil Equipment, Services & Distribution 15,839.83 +2.19%
Food & Drug Retailers 3,287.09 +2.07%
Forestry & Paper 12,203.95 +1.98%
Mining 14,058.67 +1.97%

Bottom performing sectors so far today
Electronic & Electrical Equipment 4,007.19 -2.11%
Food Producers & Processors 7,837.48 -1.80%
Personal Goods 25,713.63 -1.33%
Electricity 8,832.84 -1.12%
Beverages 14,437.00 -1.02%