London close: Brokers say it's time to add to risk

UK stocks bounced back as reports indicated that some progress was made in debt negotiations with Greece, while another leading broker said it was time for clients to add to their equity positions.That came ahead of the Chancellor's eagerly awaited Mansion House speech.The top-flight index ended the session 1.13% higher at 6,830.27.The time may have come to move back both into European and US equities, according to Citi's global equity strategy (CETS) team.The 'buy' signal for European equities came as the broker's CGDOOVER timing indicator printed below the key -100 mark for three days in a row, Antonin Jullier said in a research note e-mailed to clients.ONS reported UK industrial output sped past forecasts in April, rising by 1.2% year-on-year, thanks to a strong contribution from mining.In parallel, NIESR unveiled estimates pointing to an acceleration in the rate of growth of British GDP for the three months to May, to a quarterly pace of 0.6%.On a positive note, German Chancellor Angela Merkel may be satisfied with Greece committing to at least one economic reform sought by creditors to unlock further bailout funds, sources told Bloomberg.Bank levy to be axedGeorge Osborne is expected to signal an end to the government's £3.5bn-a-year bank levy, amid worries that HSBC might be tempted to move its headquarters abroad.The Chancellor is also expect to tell City's heavyweights they can expect to see budget surpluses almost every year going forward.S&P less positive on UK banksOvernight ratings agency Standard & Poor's downgraded several of Britain's largest lenders, including Deutsche Bank and Barclays.Engineering company Weir Group expects its annual revenue, margins and profit to be weighted more towards the second half than in previous years. The FTSE 250 warned that the second six months of 2015 were proving to be very challenging for its oil and gas division, as the US rig count continues to fall, although at a somewhat more subdued rate in May.Meanwhile, Bill Winters, the chief executive of Standard Chartered, said the bank's capital strength was a top priority. In a letter sent to employees on Wednesday, which marked his first day in his new role, Winters insisted capital strength was a key factor for banks facing challenging economic conditions.UK supermarket retailer Sainsbury's posted a sixth straight quarter of falling underlying sales on Wednesday on the back of food price deflation and increased competition. The company said like-for-like retail sales for the 12 weeks to 6 June fell 2.1% against consensus calling for a 2.2% decline.Market MoverstechMARK 3,213.20 +0.57%FTSE 100 6,830.27 +1.13%FTSE 250 18,030.13 +1.07%FTSE 100 - RisersStandard Chartered (STAN) 1,094.00p +5.80%Associated British Foods (ABF) 3,070.00p +5.35%Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 179.90p +4.96%Tesco (TSCO) 211.45p +4.63%Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 260.30p +4.54%Sports Direct International (SPD) 681.00p +3.81%Barratt Developments (BDEV) 608.00p +3.23%Persimmon (PSN) 1,955.00p +3.17%Fresnillo (FRES) 737.50p +3.15%CRH (CRH) 1,842.00p +2.62%FTSE 100 - FallersWeir Group (WEIR) 1,914.00p -0.42%Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 553.50p -0.27%Pearson (PSON) 1,272.00p -0.08%HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 613.40p -0.05%FTSE 250 - RisersTullow Oil (TLW) 396.00p +6.65%FirstGroup (FGP) 126.90p +6.37%Ocado Group (OCDO) 382.60p +5.69%Home Retail Group (HOME) 159.50p +5.63%Acacia Mining (ACA) 308.20p +4.58%Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 546.50p +4.49%Booker Group (BOK) 183.30p +4.38%Provident Financial (PFG) 2,882.00p +4.19%Vedanta Resources (VED) 596.50p +4.10%Virgin Money Holdings (UK) (VM.) 456.90p +3.84%FTSE 250 - FallersInfinis Energy (INFI) 198.00p -2.94%Keller Group (KLR) 1,071.00p -2.55%Centamin (DI) (CEY) 68.20p -2.08%Hunting (HTG) 600.00p -2.04%AO World (AO.) 151.90p -2.00%William Hill (WMH) 416.50p -1.65%PayPoint (PAY) 1,027.00p -1.16%Lonmin (LMI) 137.90p -0.93%Fidelity China Special Situations (FCSS) 167.80p -0.89%Electrocomponents (ECM) 237.10p -0.80%