London midday: Stocks rise as UK data, Greek news lift sentiment

Upbeat corporate earnings and a calmer session on the bond market helped UK equities rise on Friday morning, with sentiment boosted by a rebound in British construction output and improving newsflow from Greece.The FTSE 100 was up 0.38% at 6,999.56 by midday.Analysts also said that trading volumes were picking up following a quiet day on Thursday with bank holidays in both France and Germany.UK construction output jumped 4% in March after a 0.3% decline in February, according to the Office for National Statistics, more or less in line with economists' predictions. The rebound was helped by an upturn in private-sector house-building, which rose for the first time in six months.Meanwhile, Greece confirmed it is in "advanced talks" with China's Cosco over the privatisation of its largest port in Piraeus, showing signs of compromise as it seeks to secure emergency funding from its creditors.Investors also welcomed comments from European Central Bank president Mario Draghi on Thursday that the ECB will implement its quantitative easing programme in full."While the euro remains elevated against both the pound and the dollar, there does appear to be some stabilisation in the bond market," said analyst Brenda Kelly from London Capital Group."Equity investors are clearly front-running the potential downside in the single currency with all European indices flashing green this morning," she said.Friday afternoon will see the release of a host of economic data from the US with the Empire State manufacturing index, industrial production and University of Michigan consumer-confidence survey all due.Corporate updates impressCoca-Cola bottler Coca-Cola HBC gained after beating forecasts slightly with an unexpected increase in first-quarter sales. Net sales revenues totalled €1.353bn in the first three months of 2015, up just 1.7% on last year.Housebuilder Bovis Homes advanced after hiking its dividend plans following a strong start to the year. Bovis said it now planned to pay out 40p per share, up from the 35p it had previously indicated.Product testing and quality certification group Intertek rose after saying it traded in line with expectations in the first four months of 2015 with revenue growth of 3.3%, helped by a stronger pound.SABMiller pleased with a deal to buy London-based modern craft brewer Meantime Brewing Company for an unspecified sum as it looks to diversify from its mainstream beer brands.Online gaming group Bwin.party was higher amid deal speculation. The company released a statement saying it "reconfirms that it is continuing its discussions with a number of third parties and has received revised proposals (including from GVC Holdings PLC) regarding a variety of possible business combinations".Market MoverstechMARK 3,252.71 +0.36%FTSE 100 6,999.56 +0.38%FTSE 250 18,039.94 +0.62%FTSE 100 - RisersCoca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 1,459.00p +3.04%Carnival (CCL) 3,156.00p +2.57%Kingfisher (KGF) 359.70p +2.01%Dixons Carphone (DC.) 475.00p +1.91%Persimmon (PSN) 1,863.00p +1.91%Standard Life (SL.) 482.70p +1.90%Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 1,258.00p +1.86%ITV (ITV) 261.90p +1.79%Schroders (SDR) 3,402.00p +1.61%Shire Plc (SHP) 5,375.00p +1.51%FTSE 100 - FallersFresnillo (FRES) 749.50p -1.51%Babcock International Group (BAB) 1,083.00p -1.37%Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 4,843.00p -0.94%BP (BP.) 453.25p -0.78%Anglo American (AAL) 1,102.50p -0.72%Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 267.30p -0.71%Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 2,042.00p -0.63%AstraZeneca (AZN) 4,417.00p -0.39%Royal Dutch Shell 'A' (RDSA) 2,012.00p -0.32%Pearson (PSON) 1,319.00p -0.30%FTSE 250 - RisersBwin.party Digital Entertainment (BPTY) 94.60p +5.82%Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 513.00p +3.76%UDG Healthcare Public Limited Company (UDG) 550.00p +2.80%Henderson Group (HGG) 279.80p +2.49%Northgate (NTG) 650.50p +2.44%Dignity (DTY) 2,136.00p +2.35%Restaurant Group (RTN) 704.00p +2.33%BTG (BTG) 788.00p +2.20%Go-Ahead Group (GOG) 2,639.00p +2.01%Marston's (MARS) 167.10p +1.89%FTSE 250 - FallersEvraz (EVR) 200.10p -3.01%Acacia Mining (ACA) 304.30p -2.09%Soco International (SIA) 193.00p -1.93%Premier Oil (PMO) 179.50p -1.91%Renishaw (RSW) 2,488.00p -1.74%Tullow Oil (TLW) 419.70p -1.59%Drax Group (DRX) 418.90p -1.41%Hunting (HTG) 602.00p -1.39%Bank of Georgia Holdings (BGEO) 1,742.00p -1.36%Riverstone Energy Limited (RSE) 1,044.00p -1.32%