The FTSE 100 recovered some of this week’s losses on Friday as buoyant miners helped lift the index.
The FTSE 100 was 0.3% higher at 7,591 at the time of writing.
The index has suffered this week due to interest rate fears and concerns about global growth. A rally in the highly cyclical mining sector represents some confidence in the health of the global economy and will support sentiment.
A spectacular rally in US chipmaker Nvidia on the back of promising sales from AI innovation also lifted the mood.
“UK stocks made a strong start on Friday after an Nvidia-inspired charge on Wall Street overnight helped move investor attention away from the rumbling US debt ceiling crisis,” says AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.
“Bumper earnings from chipmaker Nvidia indicated some substance behind the recent hype over AI as big players limber up for a battle for supremacy in this nascent market and get ready to spend on the infrastructure behind it.
“The first cabinet-level talks between the US and China in months provided the backdrop for a rally in UK mining stocks, also supported by positive broker comment, and this helped to power the move higher for the FTSE 100.”
Rio Tinto was the top riser at the time of writing adding over 3%. Antofagasta, Glencore, Anglo American and Endeavour Mining closely followed Rio higher.
