U.K. equities finished the trading day higher on Thursday, led by advances in the Mining, Software & Computer Services and Media sectors. The Investing.com United Kingdom 100 closed up 0.73%.
Top movers
The standout performer on the index was WPP PLC (LON:WPP), which rose 5.59% - a gain of 20.20 points - to finish at 381.50. Informa PLC (LON:INF) followed, adding 3.89% or 34.20 points to close at 912.80. London Stock Exchange Group PLC (LON:LSEG) also posted a strong session, advancing 3.85% or 330.00 points to end at 8,898.00.
Lagging names
On the downside, Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC (LON:RKT) was the weakest member of the index, slipping 2.79% - a drop of 146.00 points - to 5,080.00 at the close. ConvaTec Group PLC (LON:CTEC) declined 2.65% or 6.20 points to finish at 227.40, and B&M European Value Retail PLC (LON:BMEB) fell 2.62% or 6.00 points to 222.80.
Market breadth and participation
Advancers outnumbered decliners on the London Stock Exchange by 1,042 to 668, while 546 issues finished unchanged, indicating a broadly positive session across listed names.
Commodities and energy
Precious metals and oil also moved higher. Gold Futures for December delivery increased 2.84% - up 125.24 - to $4,539.84 a troy ounce. In energy markets, crude oil for October delivery rose 0.46% or $0.42 to $91.43 a barrel, while the November Brent contract was unchanged at $95.63 a barrel.
Foreign exchange and dollar index
Currency pairs were relatively steady. GBP/USD was unchanged 0.34% to 1.35, and EUR/GBP was unchanged 0.03% to 0.86. The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.62% at 98.93.
Overall, the session featured selective strength among media and software-linked names, supported by positive moves in commodities and modest weakness in the dollar, producing a net gain for the U.K. large-cap index by the close.