London shares rallied on Thursday as investors welcomed signs of stronger momentum in the UK economy, with private-sector output expanding at its fastest pace in four months during August. The FTSE 100 closed 0.70% higher at 10,831.52, while the FTSE 250 gained 0.71% to 24,496.13.
Elsewhere, Wall Street was firmly higher, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 620 points, or 1.17%, at 53,676, while the S&P 500 gained 1% to 7,744. The technology-heavy Nasdaq 100 rose 1.12% to 29,470, adding to the positive tone across global equity markets.
Attention now turns to Friday’s US nonfarm payrolls report, which could prove decisive for expectations surrounding the Federal Reserve’s September interest-rate decision.
Fed Governor Chris Waller said he would be prepared to support a rate increase if incoming inflation data showed price pressures accelerating, with markets also awaiting next week’s US inflation figures.
In London, Prudential gained 3.5% after Berenberg initiated coverage with a ‘buy’ rating, while the stronger gold price supported precious-metals miners. Endeavour Mining rose 3.6% and Fresnillo gained 2.9% as gold climbed above $4,500 an ounce.
On the FTSE 250, Hilton Food Group surged 12% after upgrading its 2026 adjusted pretax profit guidance to between £66 million and £71 million, from £60 million to £65 million previously.
WPP gained 5.6% amid expectations it could benefit from changes in the global advertising account landscape following Publicis’ reported PepsiCo win.
Elsewhere, Jet2 rose 3.9% after announcing plans to transfer its entire share capital from AIM to the London Stock Exchange’s main market before the end of its current financial year. The company also reported a 7.6% increase in summer 2026 seat capacity to 19.9 million.
