Barclays' shares shrug off PPI payout to lift market

Shares in Barclays and its peers moved higher in early trading despite the bank's move to settle PPI claims.

Barclays shares rose 1.4% or 3.55p, to 260.05p, with competitors also higher, after reports banks would meet lending targets set by the government.

HSBC gained 0.7% or 4.2p, to 618p on the news, while Lloyds was up 1.23% or 0.58p, at 47.58p, and RBS climbed 0.9% or 0.32p, to 40.92p.

The gains came despite Barclays' confirmation it will settle all PPI claims against it.

Barclays said in a statement it is offering to resolve complaints put on hold during the judicial review into PPI as a gesture of goodwill, without any admission of liability.

Banking gains and takeover talk in the mining sector - where ENRC climbed near 5% to 777.5p after reports it was to be bid for by Glencore - cancelled out early losses from the wider market, pushing the FTSE 100 into positive territory.

By 11:03am, the blue chip index was up 11 points at 5,776.82.