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UK stocks opened higher on Tuesday, led by AstraZeneca on expectations that its coronavirus vaccine could be approved for use as soon as Tuesday.
At 08:30, the benchmark FTSE 100 index was up 109 points, or 1.68%, at 6,611.64.
Drugmaker AstraZeneca was among the biggest gainers, up 4% to £75.52, on reports that health regulators in the UK could announce their decision to approve the vaccine for use on Tuesday.
AstraZeneca also reported that it had won approval in Japan for a drug to treat three cancers.
Insurance company Admiral climbed 3% to £30.11 after reaching an agreement to sell Penguin Portals and Preminen comparison businesses to RVU, the comparison division of ZPG, for £508 million.
Betting company William Hill was up 0.2% to 270.5p after announcing that its £2.9 billion sale to Caesars was expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2021.
Shearwater jumped 10% to 154.5p after the cybersecurity and risk management company said revenue growth seen in October and November had continued into December, and also announced new business wins.