The Bank of England's decision to leave rates on hold has done little for the market, but a dose of unexpected good news from the US is doing the trick.
The FTSE 100, having fallen as low as 5412 - down nearly 120 points - has now recovered to 5477.2, a 52.4 point fall.
The revival has come after US futures suggested a 79 point opening on Wall Street, up from earlier forecasts of a 21 point improvement, following an upgrade from Wal-Mart. The world's biggest retailer raised its second quarter outlook after reporting a better than expected 5.8% rise in June sales, excluding fuel.
On top of that came an $18.8bn takeover, as Dow Chemicals agreed to buy rival Rohm and Haas.
