The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has raised its forecast for UK economic growth this year as the recovery continues to gather pace.
Markets across Asia fell sharply overnight, with key indices shedding over 3%, as worries about the health of the Chinese economy and its ability to re-balance continued to hurt equities.
The FTSE 100 got off to a positive start on Monday, with shares shrugging off weak data from both China and Japan to move higher.