Shares closed much higher today, following strong early gains on Wall Street, with renewed strength in the oil and mining sectors.
The FTSE100 was up 14.7 points at 6,044.1. The FTSE250 up 10.2 points at 9,785.2 and the AIM100 62.5 points higher at 6,246.2.
Volume was weak because of the extended weekend and a shorter working week with just 2.215 billion shares changing hands in 284,754 deals.
Oil stocks gained as crude futures advanced towards the $73 a barrel mark, after yesterday's suicide bomb attack in Israel added to ongoing tensions over Iran's nuclear program. US light sweet crude rose 48 cents in Asian trading, passing last year's previous highs of $70.85 reached after Hurricane Katrina. Prices have risen 16% in the past month as Iran's nuclear row has worsened and Nigerian supplies have been disrupted. Brent crude also hit a new record of $72.20 a barrel in London. Early afternoon, US light sweet crude was trading at $70.75 while Brent crude had eased slightly to $71.91.
Next week the footsieblog will be discussing the effect higher oil prices will have on the FTSE if further tensions continue with Iran. We will be looking at what stocks to own in a portfolio if oil continues to climb higher.
Mining issues also remained in demand, with precious metal prices surging to new highs as continuing geopolitical tensions led to further speculative buying right across the sector.
Gold climbed to a 25-year high of over $620 an ounce. The price was up sharply over the Easter holiday weekend, while copper and silver prices hit fresh record highs.
Today’s look at individual Stocks:
Shell was up 33p at 2,003p. BP was up 8.5p at 696.5p. Cairn Energy was up 53p at 2,248p, while BG Group climbed 22p to 764p.
Kazakhmys were up 41p at 1,230p, BHP Billiton shares rose 56.5p to 1,180.5p, Rio Tinto was also up 117p at 3,177p, Xstrata gained 71p at 2,038p, Antofagasta was up 94p to 2,416p, and Anglo American shares was up 56p at 2,422p.
British Land was one of the stronger gainers today, up 57p at 1,277p, after both UBS and Merrill Lynch raised their ratings to buy from neutral on valuation grounds.
Hammerson shares rose 15p to 1,183p, Land Securities were up 22p to 1,911p, Slough Estates climbed 8p to 651p and Brixton gained 12.5p at 501.5p.
BAA shares rose 18.5p today, to close at 860p after reports suggested that AIG (the world's largest insurer) had joined the Goldman Sachs led consortium that had a £9.4bn bid approach for the UK airport operator turned down on Sunday. The US conglomerate General Electric was also supposed to be interested in becoming involved in the US backed consortium suggesting it could come back with a stronger offer than the 870p previously rejected. Analysts thought that BAA was holding out for a bid in the region of 900p.
PartyGaming lost all of its earlier gains despite announcing a better than expected 54% increase in Q1 revenue. PartyGaming shares rose 2.75p to 149p, as profit-takers cashed in on the shares' opening three-month high of 158p. Brokers were positive with house broker Dresdner Kleinwort and Deutsche Bank both repeating their 'buy' advice and raising their targets to 210 and 190 pence respectively.
Morgan Stanley however, added a note of caution, telling clients that while the long-term story looks intact, it expects
continued volatility over the next few months as adverse regulatory news has not fully receded 
On the downside today Barclays lost 11p to close at 672p, Lloyds TSB lost 1p to 524p, Alliance & Leicester lost 11p at 1,121p and HBOS lost 4.5p to 939p.
Northern Foods shares lost 3.75p at 88.75p after Citigroup initiated coverage on the food producer with a sell recommendation and 75p price target. Northern Foods shares have really suffered just recently from concerns over the impact of the arrival of bird flu in the UK.
The Portfolio
Burren Energy (BUR) was brought back into the portfolio the day after the stop loss was reached at 920p. The stock continued to fall back to 900p at which point it was safe to purchase again. Burren Energy was the biggest riser today up 82.5p at 996.5p, after UBS upgraded its recommendation to buy from neutral, with an increased price target of 1,070p. UBS noted that Burren's shares have fallen 15%, from 1,050p to a current level of 900p, making the stock a good investment opportunity.
The rest of the portfolio offered a mix back today:
CSR (CSR) was down 1.66% - 21p to 1244.00p. CSR will release its Q1 results on Tuesday 2nd May 2006.
The Carphone Warehouse (CPW) was up slightly to 0.16% - 0.50p at 311.50p
Wolfson (WLF) continued its decline down today and lost 0.36% - 1.50p to close at 418.50p. I am holding my position firm on this stock as I suspect a rather large bounce back up will happen any day now.
The oil stocks gained today with Tullow Oil (TLW) up 3.49% - 13.25p at 393.00p and Victoria Oil and gas (VOG) up 2.80% - 6p to close at 220.00p.
