Morning Markets: FTSE higher as China posts strong growth

The FTSE has made modest gains in early trading, boosted by the buoyant performance of US stocks yesterday and strong economic data from China.

Shortly after opening, London's leading share index was up 0.10%, or 5.59 points, to 5,801. Banking stocks are among the morning's winners, following JPMorgan Chase's solid results in the US yesterday. Profits at the giant jumped 55% in Q1, fuelled by a strong showing from its investment banking business. Royal Bank of Scotland was up 1.22% and Barclays up 1.08%. The UK's blue chip index has been buoyed by news the Chinese economy grew by 11.9% in Q1. Global markets have also been boosted by US economic optimism from Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke. Yesterday, the Dow clos...