Source: Sharecast
At 0850 BST, the FTSE 100 was up 0.1% at 10,623.44, while Brent crude was 0.4% higher at $95.19 a barrel.
Donald Trump said on Tuesday that talks with Iran in Islamabad could resume over the next two days, according to The New York Post.
In an interview with an NYT reporter who had gone to Islamabad for the first round of talks, the US President said: "You should stay there, really, because something could be happening over the next two days, and we’re more inclined to go there."
He also said that Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, was doing a "great job" organising the talks. "He’s fantastic, and therefore it’s more likely that we go back there," Trump said.
In an interview with Fox News, Trump said the war was "close to over".
Meanwhile, a White House official reportedly told CNBC that a second round of negotiations between the US and Iran was being discussed. The official said nothing has been officially scheduled yet.
Danske Bank said: "It would be a surprise if the talks lead to a permanent ceasefire, with the most likely scenario being an extension of the current ceasefire, if the US and Iranian officials meet again over the weekend or early next week."
In equity markets, Barratt Redrow led the gains for housebuilders as it reiterated guidance but warned that war in the Middle East was making visibility beyond the current year more uncertain.
The company said the third quarter had been "solid", with reservations underpinned by robust customer demand. The net private reservation rate was 0.67, 6.3% higher year-on-year, while total forward sales stood at £3.54bn as at 29 March. It delivered a total of 3,274 total home completions in the period.
As a result, Barratt said it remained on track to deliver total home completions of between 17,200 and 17,800 in the current year, and adjusted pre-tax profits in line with consensus. However, it also flagged that visibility beyond the current year was now "more uncertain".
Persimmon, Berkeley, Vistry and Bellway all gained.
Standard Life rose after agreeing to buy the UK arm of Dutch insurer Aegon for £2bn. The deal will create the UK’s largest retirements and savings and income business and the combined group will have 16m customers and assets under administration of around £480bn.
Gambling operator Rank Group surged as it said it expected full-year operating profit of at least £68m after a 5% jump in third-quarter net gaming revenue. The owner of Mecca bingo and Grosvenor casinos said NGR for the three months to March came in at £205.4m, with year-to-date NGR up 6% on the prior year.
Outside the FTSE 350, Saga shot higher after saying it swung to a full-year profit, exceeding guidance thanks to strong performances in the travel and insurance segments.
On the downside, luxury fashion brand Burberry slumped following disappointing first-quarter updates from Gucci owner Kering and Hermes, both of which fell sharply.
Imperial Brands was in the red again following a downgrade to 'neutral' at UBS.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 10,623.44 0.14%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 22,760.53 0.16%
techMARK (TASX) 5,930.08 0.00%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Antofagasta (ANTO) 3,985.50p 2.97%
Convatec Group (CTEC) 241.20p 1.76%
Barratt Redrow (BTRW) 260.90p 1.63%
Standard Life (SDLF) 718.40p 1.34%
Anglo American (AAL) 3,625.50p 1.31%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 9,236.00p 1.18%
3i Group (III) 2,794.00p 1.14%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 7,378.00p 1.03%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 397.20p 0.89%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 15,044.00p 0.84%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,133.60p -3.06%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,851.00p -2.27%
Airtel Africa (AAF) 367.20p -1.72%
Associated British Foods (ABF) 1,844.50p -1.65%
CRH (CDI) (CRH) 8,586.00p -1.24%
BT Group (BT.A) 217.70p -0.98%
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (DI) (CCEP) 7,140.00p -0.97%
Prudential (PRU) 1,112.00p -0.93%
Flutter Entertainment (DI) (FLTR) 7,874.00p -0.91%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 74.14p -0.86%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Rank Group (RNK) 97.50p 8.30%
Raspberry PI Holdings (RPI) 591.50p 6.24%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 187.80p 2.58%
HGCapital Trust (HGT) 393.00p 2.08%
Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) 115.70p 1.86%
Kier Group (KIE) 216.60p 1.50%
Ceres Power Holdings (CWR) 355.80p 1.50%
Vistry Group (VTY) 342.00p 1.48%
Domino's Pizza Group (DOM) 187.70p 1.45%
RTW Biotech Opportunities Ltd (RTW) 2.18p 1.40%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Hilton Food Group (HFG) 511.00p -3.95%
Ruffer Investment Company Ltd Red PTG Pref Shares (RICA) 305.00p -1.93%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 996.00p -1.87%
Capital Gearing Trust (CGT) 5,020.00p -1.76%
Quilter (QLT) 186.90p -1.32%
North Atlantic Smaller Companies Inv Trust (NAS) 340.00p -1.16%
Energean (ENOG) 825.50p -1.02%
Caledonia Investments (CLDN) 350.50p -0.99%
Watches of Switzerland Group (WOSG) 510.00p -0.97%
easyJet (EZJ) 392.40p -0.81%