London stocks gain as 'careful' UK easing begins

London-listed stocks rose on Monday as investors pinned their hopes on a revival in business activity, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson outlining plans to gradually ease some coronavirus-induced lockdown measures. While Johnson said on Sunday the lockdown will not end yet, he announced a limited easing of restrictions, including allowing people to exercise outside more often and encouraging some people to return to work.

The FTSE 100 climbed 0.9% and the mid-cap FTSE 250 added 1.2%, as traders returning from a long weekend also caught up with strong gains in Europe on Friday, driven by an easing in U.S.-China tensions. On a slow company news day, early gains were driven by battered life insurers, banks and miners.

EazyJet Plc, however, tumbled 4.2% to the bottom of the FTSE 100 as Johnson said the UK would soon need to quarantine people coming into the country by air to prevent a second wave of coronavirus infections.