FTSE ends week on a high

Friday 31st October 2008, 5:29PM GMT.

FTSE ends week on a high After spending much of the day hovering around the 4,200 mark, the FTSE 100 soared in late afternoon trading to end two per cent higher.

The rally helped the index steer clear of making record losses for October as hopes of interest rate cuts boosted confidence.

Mining and energy stocks were once again the biggest gainers on the UK’s benchmark index, with Tullow Oil up 10.78 per cent and Xstrata up 9.9 per cent.

BT Group topped the list of stocks in the red today, closing 19 per cent lower after a surprise announcement the firm expects to miss its profit forecast this year.

Financial firms were also trading lower, with Barclays down 12.84 per cent, a sharp reverse in the bank’s fortunes after rising earlier today.

Ryan Kneale, market analyst at BetsForTraders.com, said: “In general, this week has been a lot more positive but we are still seeing wild swings in sentiment and volatility and we expect this to continue for the foreseeable future.

“We have a barrage of earnings announcements from both sides of the Atlantic next week and we can confidently predict that they will greeted with more volatility.”