London stocks closed higher on the fourth consecutive day, as retail and hospitality firms continued their winning streak.
As recent concerns about the possibility of further Covid restrictions being lifted, sentiment across Europe was generally more positive.
Strong retail figures from the Confederation for British Industry’s (CBI) latest survey boosted London trading. There were also positive notes for many hospitality and leisure companies such as Whitbread and InterContinental Hotels Group.
On Thursday, the FTSE 100 closed at 7,310.37p, which was 24.05 points higher or 0.33%.
Von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, called on countries to intensify vaccination efforts to combat rising numbers of cases.
Joshua Mahoney is a senior market analyst at IG. He said that European markets had enjoyed a fairly positive day today with the US’s absence reducing volatility.
“While rising Covid cases are a concern for the mainland European economies, we have seen both the DAX (and CAC) gain ground.”
The German Dax increased 0.25 percent and the French Cac rose 0.48 percent.
Wall Street was shut down across the Atlantic for Thanksgiving celebrations.
The pound was 0.03% higher against the US dollar at 1.332 and 0.04% higher against the euro at 1.188.
Vivo Energy, which accepted a takeover offer of 2.3 billion dollars (PS1.7billion) from its largest shareholder, has risen to the top of FTSE 350 company news.
According to the listed retailer, Engen-branded fuels and Shell-branded fuels are primarily focused on Africa. Vitol Investment Partnership already holds a 36% share.
Shares in Vivo increased by 20.6p to 132p
Mitchells & Butlers, the Harvester and All Bar One owners, made significant gains after the hospitality company reduced its annual losses.
The company that also manages Toby Carvery saw an improvement in sentiment, despite the warning it faces from rising gas prices and electricity prices, as well as rising food costs due to shortages and increased staff costs.
At the close of play, shares in Mitchells & Butlers increased by 8.4% to 244.4p
Omega Diagnostics shares fell after it stated that it was disappointed by the Government’s lack of progress and commitment regarding Covid-19 testing contracts.
After it informed shareholders that its losses increased to PS3.4million for the half-year ending September, the Scotland-based medical diagnostics company saw its shares fall by 10.5p to 29.5p
Oil prices remained steady this week as traders absorbed the news of additional oil supplies earlier in the week.
Brent crude oil was flat at 82.25 USD per barrel when London markets closed.
Compass Group saw a 49p increase to 1,584p, Whitbread saw an 84p rise to 3,108p, IHG saw an 135p increase to 5,042p, Land Securities saw an 18.4p increase to 766.2p, and St James’s Place saw an 36p rise to 1,586.5p.
Vodafone fell 4p to 114.1p, United Utilities dropped 16p, 740.2p, Darktrace fell 9p, 479.6p, and Imperial Brands fell 23p, 1,594p, respectively. Ocado fell 25p, to 1,749p.
