Market moves up strongly

The FTSE 100 Index has closed just a touch below the key 5,200 mark - 122.9 points ahead at 5193.3.

Traders said fund managers were rushing to buy because they were afraid of missing the boat.

Among the gainers were banking stocks, with Lloyds TSB up 30½p at 717p, Royal Bank of Scotland ahead 75p to £16.84, Barclays rising 102p to £21, HBOS up 36p to 821p and HSBC jumping 35½p to 781½p.

Abbey National, which soothed investors nerves with its autumn trading update, also rose, up 23p at £10.53. Despite warning of an uncertain outlook, it said its pre-tax profits were "comfortably ahead" of last year's levels.

Telecom shares were also posting solid gains, with Vodafone rising 4¼p to 169½p while Cable & Wireless was up 25½p at 342½p.

BT, which saw its demerger plans overwhelmingly passed by shareholders at its AGM despite some protesters appealing to the group to call off the plan, also gained strongly. Shares in the firm were up 7%, rising 25¼p to 367½p.

But British Airways was flying highest of all, posting a 14% gain on continuing speculation of closer links with other carriers. The airline, badly affected by the impact of the terrorist attacks on the US last month, was up 19¾p to 159½p.

Oil firms were lending their weight to the market, with BP and Shell ahead, up 14p at 575p and 18p at 530½p, as firmer oil prices boosted their shares.

Media stocks were also bouncing back from recent falls as investors looked for bargains among the blue-chips. Pearson sparked 7% or 55p to 810p, while United Business Media rose 35p to 435p.

WPP also rose, up 36½p to 573p. It said today it had obtained information which may help it wriggle out of its takeover of Tempus.