London stocks jump at open as Fed bond buying spurs recovery hopes

The Fed said it would start purchasing corporate bonds on Tuesday through the secondary market corporate credit facility (SMCCF) to beef up liquidity in the market. British blue-chip stocks jumped 1.8%, with life insurers among top advancers.

UK shares jumped at the open on Tuesday after the U.S. Federal Reserve's move to expand its purchase of corporate bonds to contain the damage from the COVID-19 pandemic eased liquidity concerns and boosted hopes of a global economic recovery. The Fed said it would start purchasing corporate bonds on Tuesday through the secondary market corporate credit facility (SMCCF) to beef up liquidity in the market.

British blue-chip stocks jumped 1.8%, with life insurers among top advancers. The mid-cap FTSE 250 index rose 1.7%, with cinema operator Cineworld Group Plc's 8.5% surge leading gains as it said some of its theatres would reopen in the last week of June and the rest in July.