Pound given boost by projected remain win in European Union referendum

The FTSE 100 has hit a two-month high and European stocks have rallied as voters head to the polls to vote in the EU referendum.

All of the FTSE sectors opened in the green, with energy and miners the frontrunners in London.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index was up 0.4 percent, having risen earlier in the session by as much as 1 percent to its highest in nearly two weeks.

“For weeks, market participants have been speculating about what might the outcome of the Brexit vote will be. Offers are eyed at 6300/6325 zone”.

“Following a cautiously optimistic “squeaky-bum” start on still-tight opinion polls, we have moved towards markets effectively pricing in a Remain vote as a done deal”, said Mike Van Dulken at Accendo Markets.

On the data front, there are no major United Kingdom releases, but US initial jobless claims are at 1330 BST, US Markit PMI manufacturing is at 1445 BST and leading indicators and new home sales are at 1500 BST. US New Home Sales are seen lower in May while the US Leading Index may barely have grown in May.

Oil prices rose slightly, with Brent Crude up 0.7 per cent and above $50 a barrel, in a sign that risky assets were back in favour with investors around the world.

In corporate news, pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca confirmed disappointing news to investors on Thursday, with updated guidance from United States regulators recommending against its FluMist Quadrivalent influenza vaccine.

This was based on CDC vaccine effectiveness data from the last three flu seasons in the United States, which indicated FluMist did not demonstrate statistically significant effectiveness in children aged between two and 17.

Tesco was up 1.7 percent after Britain’s biggest retailer reported a second successive quarter of United Kingdom underlying sales growth, the first time it has done so in more than five years, signalling its recovery is making steady progress.

In the FSTE 250, packaging company DS Smith was a riser after it reported a small jump in full-year profit as revenue grew, partly thanks to acquisitions.