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UK stocks opened higher on Monday after coronavirus-hit China moved to buffer its economy by cutting interest rates on medium-term loans.
At 0828, the benchmark FTSE 100 index was up 35.66 points, or 0.5%, at 7.444.79.
Asset manager Jupiter Fund Management rallied 8.1% to 428.8p on confirming press speculation that it was in 'advanced' talks to acquire rival Merian.
Broking group Share, which owns The Share Centre, leaped 15% to 33.48p as it had agreed to be acquired by the holding company of Interactive Investor in a cash and shares deal worth around £61.9m.
Tullow Oil shed 4.0% to 43.43p after an exploration well drilled off the coast of Peru, in which it had a 35% non-operating stake, failed to discover significant hydrocarbons.
Gulf region focused hospital owner NMC Health reversed 2.7% to 754.16p, having announced the departure of three more directors, including its chairman and its chief investment officer.
The exodus came after the company recently admitted that it wasn't sure how many shares in the company its chairman and some other of its directors actually owned.
Gambling company William Hill added 0.8% to 182.2p on news that it had appointed DS Smith finance head Adrian Marsh as its new chief financial officer. DS Smith fell 1.6% to 359,91p.
House builder Persimmon gained 0.7% to £32.53, having appointed Bank of England chief operating officer Joanna Place as a new independent non-executive director.
Petra Diamonds dropped 9.3% to 7.59p after it booked a first-half loss, warned of a slower start to the year and said it was negotiating debt covenant waivers with its lenders.
The company also warned that the coronavirus outbreak was having a negative impact on the diamond market, forcing it to downgrade cashflow forecasts, and that it was negotiating debt covenant waivers with its lenders.
Platinum group metals producer Sylvania Platinum firmed 2.4% to 50,16 posted a rise in first-half on the back of higher production volumes, and announced the departure of its chief executive.
Complex cable supplier Volex gained 5.8% to 156,52 said all four of its sites in China had now resumed operations, though at reduced capacity.