Schroders led the risers at the end of trading as share price rose by 4.6 per cent to 1,595p as financials once came to the fore for the second day running.

The asset manager and private bank reaped the benefits as investors became more bullish on the financial sector.

Its non-voting share class also increased to 1,276p, rising by 4 per cent. Emerging markets-focused bank Standard Chartered saw share price increase by 2.8 percent to 1,825p.

Microchip manufacturer Arm Holdings was also thrown into the mix, with share price rising by 3.2 percent to 372p.

The biggest faller was temporary power provider Aggreko, which this morning published its third quarter results, dropping by 4.2 per cent to 1,592p.

The firm reported that full-year pre-tax earnings were likely to be around £300 million and had seen profits in its international operations buoyed by the FIFA World Cup in South Africa earlier this year.

Drug maker AstraZeneca dropped 3.3 per cent to 3,139.5p after reporting its third quarter results, which were down slightly on the prior-year period.

Engineering firm Weir Group also dropped 2.6 per cent to 1,535p.