Morning markets: FTSE opens higher after Wall Street rally

The FTSE 100 opened higher, up 0.35% or 18.22 points to 5,196.74 following Wall Street's late rally.

Banks led early morning gains, with Lloyds Banking Group advancing 1.79% to 59.75p, while Royal Bank of Scotland rose 1.35% to 47.35p. Market casualties include British American Tobacco. It dropped 0.77% to £21.36 after revealing that its chief operating officer Nicandro Durante will become CEO in February when Paul Adams steps down. BAT rival Imperial Tobacco Group was also among early fallers, down 0.57% to £19.03. Meanwhile, shares in embattled oil giant BP dipped 0.15% to £3.33. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones was largely unchanged after having suffered falls in early trading....