Blue-chip shares today built on their strong performance last week amid more festive cheer for the stock market.
The FTSE 100 Index rose by 3.9% last week, its best performance in three years - buoyed by indications that the US Federal Reserve was in no hurry to raise interest rates - and was up by another 0.5%, or 31.5 points, to 6576.7 today.
Comments from Saudi petroleum minister Ali Naimi spurred a rebound in the oil price to as high as 63 US dollars for a barrel of Brent crude and helped the index to top 6600 points at one stage.
The minister said he was certain the oil market would recover with the improvement of the global economy.
But the oil price boost was short-lived and the FTSE 100 eased back a little as industry heavyweights pared gains, with BP ending the session just 0.6p ahead at 413.6p though Royal Dutch Shell managed a 1%, or 23p, rise to 2245.5p.
The 'Santa rally' has lifted hopes that the top-flight may still finish the year higher than its starting level of 6749 - avoiding its first fall since 2011.
Chris Beauchamp, market analyst at IG Index, said year-end window dressing was helping to push the major indices higher after big losses earlier in the month.
He added: "The recovery of the past week has been remarkable, with the potential for more given thin trading and the sparse calendar."
Other stocks on the front foot included Asia-facing banking giant Standard Chartered with a gain of 16p to 943p and retailer Marks & Spencer with a rise of 4.8p to 480.8p.
Pre-Chistmas sentiment was also in evidence in global bourses with Germany's Dax. France's Cac 40, and New York's Dow Jones Industrial Average all ahead.
On currency markets, sterling was little changed against the greenback at 1.56 US dollars and down slightly against the single currency at a little above 1.27 euros.
Meanwhile in London equities, B&Q owner Kingfisher rose 5.9p to 330.1p after it sold a 70% stake in its loss-making China business to Beijing-based Wumei Holdings for £140 million.
The company opened its first store in China in 1999 and now has 39 outlets and employs over 3,000 staff but sales fell by 7.6% to £163 million in the first half of this year due to the impact of a slowing Chinese property market.
There was more woe for Tesco after the Financial Reporting Council announced that it will focus on financial figures reported and prepared by Britain's biggest supermarket and its auditor, PwC.
In the wake of Tesco's £263 million overstatement of profit expectations, the FRC said it had launched a probe into Tesco's financial statements in the financial years ending in 2012, 2013 and 2014. Shares were down 2%, or 4.4p at 181p.
The biggest risers in the FTSE 100 Index were Admiral up 30p to 1339p, Compass up 21p to 1107p, BAE Systems up 8.6p to 471.3p and Kingfisher up 5.9p to 330.1p.
The biggest fallers in the FTSE 100 Index were Randgold Resources down 281p to 4150p, Tullow Oil down 17.2p to 407p, Fresnillo down 25p to 714p and Petrofac down 18p to 704.5p.
ends
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