By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.K. stocks rose Friday, with gains for
oil issues supporting the FTSE 100 toward its first advance in four
sessions.
The FTSE 100 index rose 0.3% to 6,834.21, but was still poised
for a weekly decline of 0.2%.
Oil shares were up as crude prices moved higher ahead of the
release of the widely watched monthly U.S. jobs report. Wall Street
expects a sizable increase of 210,000 jobs for May, raising the
prospect of stronger oil demand as the labor market and the economy
continue to improve.
Shares of oil major BP PLC (BP) climbed 0.7%, extending
Thursday's rise of 0.4%. Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSB) (RDSB) tacked
on 0.7% and BG Group rose 0.2%.
The jobs report is due at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time.
The FTSE 100's top performer was Aggreko PLC , up 2.1% after the
temporary-power provider's buy rating was reaffirmed at
Jefferies.
But decliners included consumer discretionary and staples firms,
with luxury-goods retailer Burberry Group PLC (BURBY) down 1.2% and
Wm. Morrison Supermarkets PLC lower by 0.8%. Morrison said this
week that chairman Sir Ian Gibson won't seek re-election for the
position next year.
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