US stocks slumped to their worst August in nine years, as investors retreated on fears for the US economy.
Prudential's 1.5% rise in early trading, following better than expected first-half profits, helped the FTSE edge 0.3% higher to 5257.79 points.
Asian markets were in decline today following the sharp 3% fall for US indices on Friday.
Miners and banks are driving the FTSE upwards this morning, as London's leading shares continue to rebound on the back of Wall Street's stellar showing yesterday.
Managers at newly launched Integral believe rapid-growth of ETFs is key to unlocking opportunities for investor asset allocation
Profit taking saw the FTSE 100 fall 1.3% to 5316.22 points this morning, negating some of its 5.2% rise on Monday.
US stocks plunged to lows last seen in 1987 tonight, amid speculation a trader entered a "b" for billion instead of an "m" for million when placing an order.
A full decade after the Nasdaq peaked and then toppled dramatically from investor favour, clearly the wounds of technology investors are still taking time to heal.
Concentrating on US healthcare reform has led many analysts to overlook other positives in the biotechnology sector
Early trading saw the FTSE 100 fall after reaching a 12-month high on Monday.