UK stocks gain for third day in a row

By MoneyhighStreet Staff. Published on August 29, 2008 This post currently has no comments.

The City
UK blue chips advanced with improved showings for financials and commodity shares helping to offset falls for retailers and telecommunications companies.

At the close the FTSE 100 index gained by 32.05 points to finish at 5,633.2, marking the third consecutive day that it has risen.

Banking shares had been buoyed by improved sentiment over the health of the US economy after the release of official figures from the US commerce department showing that the nation''s gross domestic product had grown by 3.3 per cent in the second quarter.

The improvement comes after the benchmark posted an 11 per cent lost in the preceding three months, as soaring commodity prices and fears over the direction of the domestic economy weighed on investor sentiment.

Among the day''s gainers were Petrofac, Restaurant Group and Bloomsbury Publishing, which had been boosted by improved earnings on the back of sales of the last Harry Potter book.