London open: Mining stocks lift FTSE on PBoC stimulus

20th Apr 2015 09:07

UK stocks rose strongly on Monday morning as markets rebounded after a heavy sell-off the previous session, as sentiment recovered over the weekend following stimulus measures in China."The markets were buoyed this morning by the news that China's central bank has taken fresh, if tentative, steps in combatting the economic slowdown," said Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell.The FTSE 100 was up 0.84% at 7053.61 in early deals, with mining stocks leading the rise.The index dropped 0.9% on Friday to 6,994.63, its first close below 7,000 since 8 April, as a Bloomberg terminal outage and a change to short-selling regulations in China sparked volatility across global financial markets.The People's Bank of China, under pressure to boost growth following a recent batch of weak economic data, this weekend lowered its reserve requirement ratio by one percentage point, the most aggressive cut since 2008.However, the bigger-than-expected move, intended to boost bank lending, failed to spark a rally on Asian indices with stocks across the continent firmly in the red on Monday.Developments in Greece continue to be in focus as the Eurogroup meets this week to discuss the reform package Athens needs to present in exchange for a further €7.2bn bailout tranche.The International Monetary Fund said on Monday that it is "hopeful" of a solution to discussions.Mining stocks jump, Petrofac slumpsMiners such as Anglo American, Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton, Glencore and Vedanta Resources were rising strongly as stimulus measures in China spurred buying across the sector.Russia-focused steel producer Evraz gained after reporting stable output levels in the first quarter of 2015, though it did warn that production will drop over the next three months due to scheduled maintenance works.Oilfield services outfit Petrofac dropped 12% after saying it expects to recognise a further loss of $195m in 2015 for the Laggan-Tormore gas plant project on Shetland. The company, which had already recognised a $230m loss on the project in 2014, told investors earlier this year that it did not foresee a further profit or loss over the remainder of the contract duration.Engineering software group Aveva impressed with a short, albeit positive, pre-close trading update which said annual results should meet analysts' forecasts. Aveva said the annual report "positively reflects the resilience of the underlying business model".Polymer products group Victrex was advancing after Exane BNP Paribas lifted its rating on the stock to 'outperform'. Market MoverstechMARK 3,215.88 +0.66%FTSE 100 7,053.61 +0.84%FTSE 250 17,645.31 +0.41%FTSE 100 - RisersAnglo American (AAL) 1,038.00p +2.72%InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 2,785.00p +2.31%Pearson (PSON) 1,379.00p +1.77%Mondi (MNDI) 1,382.00p +1.77%Rio Tinto (RIO) 2,850.00p +1.75%Ashtead Group (AHT) 1,131.00p +1.71%Prudential (PRU) 1,663.00p +1.62%AstraZeneca (AZN) 4,827.00p +1.62%BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,468.50p +1.56%HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 608.60p +1.43%FTSE 100 - FallersCoca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 1,343.00p -1.10%Sky (SKY) 1,044.00p -0.76%Persimmon (PSN) 1,723.00p -0.58%G4S (GFS) 297.10p -0.37%easyJet (EZJ) 1,819.00p -0.22%Capita (CPI) 1,119.00p -0.18%Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 1,207.00p -0.17%FTSE 250 - RisersVictrex plc (VCT) 2,074.00p +3.80%Vedanta Resources (VED) 570.00p +3.35%Evraz (EVR) 197.00p +2.76%Kaz Minerals (KAZ) 233.20p +2.37%Petra Diamonds Ltd.(DI) (PDL) 163.50p +2.12%AO World (AO.) 189.30p +1.94%Ocado Group (OCDO) 355.40p +1.86%Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) 437.40p +1.77%Home Retail Group (HOME) 173.10p +1.70%Spire Healthcare Group (SPI) 325.20p +1.62%FTSE 250 - FallersPetrofac Ltd. (PFC) 894.00p -11.83%RPS Group (RPS) 233.10p -2.51%Just Retirement Group (JRG) 173.30p -1.98%Fidessa Group (FDSA) 2,285.00p -1.97%Polymetal International (POLY) 552.50p -1.52%Zoopla Property Group (WI) (ZPLA) 185.50p -1.43%SSP Group (SSPG) 299.10p -1.35%Card Factory (CARD) 312.80p -1.26%TR Property Inv Trust (TRY) 316.80p -1.03%Electrocomponents (ECM) 240.50p -0.82%