Markets edge higher as all eyes turn to Bernanke

UK shares were making tentative moves higher in mid-morning trading, ahead of the Jackson Hole speech by Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke later today, with other markets also rising.

The FTSE 100 was up 15 points at 5,735 by 10:35am, with shares in Europe also climbing, ahead of the long-awaited speech from Bernanke which will take place at 3.00pm (GMT). Investors were cautious ahead of what could be a pivotal speech revealing the US' potential plans for further quantitative easing. Talk that Bernanke's speech will be more backward-looking than investors are hoping for drove down US shares yesterday, with the S&P 500 down 0.8% at 1,399, and the Dow off by the same amount, closing at 13,000. Others are holding out for hints about further easing, but with QE1 and...