LONDON: UK stocks opened 12 to 19 points higher, FTSE 100 surged 0.3 percent on Friday trade.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 equity index ended down 0.2 percent at 6,810.60 on Thursday, near a one week low with oil major Royal Dutch Shell weighing on the market after it missed earnings expectations.
The index is up 3.7 percent this month, and is set for its best month since February last year heading into the last trading day in January.
Lead industry negotiator Royal Dutch Shell said on Thursday it was “optimistic” a new three-year agreement could be reached with a union representing hourly workers at 63 U.S. refineries that account for two-thirds of U.S. refining capacity.
Oil prices dipped on Friday following slight gains in the previous session, with analysts saying the outlook remained weak, while London copper was headed for its longest weekly losing streak in more than six years as fragile economic growth and ample supply continued to hurt prices.
