London close: Stocks rise for fourth day on continued Greek optimism

UK stocks closed with small gains on Tuesday but finished higher for the fourth straight day as hopes over Greece continued to support markets.The FTSE 100 rose 9.2 points (+0.13%) to 6,834.87, its highest finish since 11 June, as broker upgrades lifted shares of blue chips Sports Direct, Smith & Nephew, Johnson Matthey, Diageo and Vodafone.Optimism surrounding a short-term funding deal for Athens has increased over recent days after Greek officials submitted a last-minute proposal to creditors at the weekend.With the gap appearing to be narrowing between the two sides, investors and analysts alike are hopeful that an agreement can be made this week, despite current sticking points such as proposed VAT and corporate tax hikes.EU commissioner Pierre Moscovici labelled meetings on Monday as "useful" and said the views of Greece and its lenders were converging. IMF chief Christine Lagarde, however, acknowledged that officials "have a huge amount of work to do in the next 48 hours".If an agreement is signed off, EU leaders could give the plan approval and unlock bailout funds at a scheduled meeting on Thursday, as Athens nears its 30 June deadline to repay the IMF €1.6bn."Stock markets in Europe continue to be of the opinion that a Greek deal is on its way later in the week," said IG analyst Chris Beauchamp. "If we reach the end of the week without a deal, the response could be ugly."Chinese and Eurozone data improves, US data mixedA series of global purchasing managers' indices from across the world came in ahead of expectations on Tuesday.Overnight, the HSBC China manufacturing PMI improved to 49.6 in June from 49.2 in May, showing that activity contracted at a slower rate than the 49.4 consensus forecast suggested.PMIs from across Europe also beat estimates, with activity in Germany and France picking up more than analysts expected. As a result, the Markit Eurozone composite PMI rose to 54.1 in June from 53.6 previously, surpassing the 53.5 estimate.However, data from the States came in mixed: US durable goods orders dropped by 1.8% in May, the Markit US manufacturing PMI unexpectedly fell to 53.4, while US new home sales rose 2.2% to a seven-year high of 546,000.Ladbrokes jumps on Gala Coral dealLadbrokes shares jumped 15% after the bookie chain confirmed it was in mergers talks with the board of Gala Coral. The tie-up would create a the UK's largest bookmaker with over 4,000 betting shops nationwide.A number of blue chips were also performing well after a series of broker upgrades.RBC Capital Markets lifted its stance on Sports Direct to 'outperform', saying the sports retailer is "regaining momentum".UBS raised Smith & Nephew to 'buy', pointing out the shares were trading at a discount to the European medical technology sector.Johnson Matthey rose after Citigroup upgraded the chemical business to 'buy', saying the current valuations is "an attractive entry point".Nomura lifted Diageo to 'buy', saying bad news flow at the spirits product is abating and "a recovery in growth should become visible in full-year 2016".Meanwhile, Vodafone's share price was also boosted by an upgrade by Nomura from "buy", saying that the proposed asset swaps with Liberty Global could lead to a "golden opportunity".In other news, distribution and outsourcing business Bunzl disappointed with a slowdown in organic growth in the second quarter. The group also announced that it has acquired four businesses in the US, Colombia, Canada and France.Oilfield services outfit Petrofac gained after saying that additional costs tied to the development of its flagship project in the Shetland Islands would be partially offset by tax provisions. Charles Stanley upgraded the stock to 'accumulate', saying there is "hope that Petrofac will turn a corner".Market MoverstechMARK 3,214.43 +0.51%FTSE 100 6,834.87 +0.13%FTSE 250 17,997.62 +0.51%FTSE 100 - RisersSports Direct International (SPD) 725.00p +3.20%Weir Group (WEIR) 1,836.00p +2.86%Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 564.00p +2.73%Smith & Nephew (SN.) 1,111.00p +2.21%Meggitt (MGGT) 477.60p +2.14%Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 3,220.00p +2.12%Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,949.00p +1.99%Sage Group (SGE) 549.00p +1.57%Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 269.20p +1.32%Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 359.50p +1.32%FTSE 100 - FallersBunzl (BNZL) 1,852.00p -2.06%TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 1,164.00p -1.36%Barratt Developments (BDEV) 632.50p -1.17%Royal Dutch Shell 'A' (RDSA) 1,855.50p -1.04%Persimmon (PSN) 2,030.00p -1.02%BAE Systems (BA.) 474.30p -0.98%Associated British Foods (ABF) 3,064.00p -0.97%Carnival (CCL) 3,258.00p -0.91%Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 1,888.00p -0.76%Whitbread (WTB) 5,215.00p -0.76%FTSE 250 - RisersLadbrokes (LAD) 140.00p +14.66%Serco Group (SRP) 133.30p +7.94%Hunting (HTG) 664.00p +6.50%Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 923.00p +6.15%Entertainment One Limited (ETO) 357.10p +4.45%Ocado Group (OCDO) 410.00p +3.82%Nostrum Oil & Gas (NOG) 570.00p +3.64%Telecom Plus (TEP) 850.00p +3.53%RPC Group (RPC) 678.50p +3.51%Auto Trader Group (AUTO) 315.70p +2.63%FTSE 250 - FallersEvraz (EVR) 139.70p -4.84%Pets at Home Group (PETS) 293.40p -2.20%Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 569.00p -2.15%Just Retirement Group (JRG) 177.20p -2.10%Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) 465.70p -2.02%Lonmin (LMI) 126.40p -2.02%Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 3,395.00p -1.62%FirstGroup (FGP) 125.70p -1.57%Polymetal International (POLY) 541.50p -1.55%Foxtons Group (FOXT) 258.80p -1.37%