London open: 5,900 in sight as Footsie starts strongly

Only four stocks were in the red on Monday morning as the blue chip index recovered from a week of losses on the back of the back-and-forth debt ceiling debates in the US.However, the saga is apparently close to its end after President Barack Obama and congressional leaders agreed on a deal to put before Congress that will cut an initial $1trn from federal government deficit expenditure, growing to more than $2trn over 10 years. In UK economics, fresh concerns over the strength of the UK economic recovery were signaled by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), which said it now forecasts gross domestic product (GDP) to rise by 1.3% in 2011, down from an initial estimate of 1.7% growth. The comments come after the Office for National Statistics revealed last week that GDP rose by just 0.2% in the second quarter.The big mover in early trading was on the FTSE 250: Punch Taverns. Shares in the pub operator were over 80% lower after the completion of the demerger of its 'Spirit' business to Spirit Pub Company.Back on the FTSE 100, HSBC was making gains ahead of its interim results which are due in the next few hours. The bank also announced the sale of 195 New York branches for $1bn. Testing and inspections firm Intertek was the high riser, after revenue in the first half of 2011 rose 17%. "Our businesses continue to perform well overall, with strength in some areas offsetting slower growth in others," said Wolfhart Hauser, chief executive of Intertek. The miners were among the best performers, with Kazakhmys, Vedanta Resources, Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton and Antofagasta rising higher.Outsourcing behemoth Serco was in demand after it signed a new hospital services contract, worth A$1.3bn (£850m), in Australia. Net rental income at retail-focued real estate group Hammerson came in 2.8% higher, +3.9% on a like-for-like basis, driven by lettings and rent reviews in the UK and indexation in France. Shares were 2% higher in early trading.Essar Energy climber higher after announcing that it has completed the $350m acquisition of the oil refinery and other associated assets at Stanlow from Shell UK.BCFTSE 100 - RisersIntertek Group (ITRK) 1,980.00p +3.39%Weir Group (WEIR) 2,184.00p +2.92%ITV (ITV) 71.70p +2.50%Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 584.00p +2.46%Kazakhmys (KAZ) 1,381.00p +2.45%Vedanta Resources (VED) 1,813.00p +2.43%Rio Tinto (RIO) 4,400.00p +2.33%BHP Billiton (BLT) 2,326.00p +2.33%Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,442.00p +2.27%GKN (GKN) 229.40p +2.09%FTSE 100 - FallersMorrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 290.30p -0.21%GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,361.50p -0.18%Inmarsat (ISAT) 539.50p -0.09%National Grid (NG.) 596.50p -0.08%FTSE 250 - RisersUltra Electronics Holdings (ULE) 1,632.00p +3.75%Genesis Emerging Markets Fund Ltd. (GSS) 521.50p +3.37%Bovis Homes Group (BVS) 426.20p +3.35%Supergroup (SGP) 1,100.00p +3.29%Yule Catto & Co (YULC) 219.70p +3.15%Talvivaara Mining Company (TALV) 443.00p +3.12%WH Smith (SMWH) 522.50p +2.96%Soco International (SIA) 374.70p +2.94%Rotork (ROR) 1,631.00p +2.84%Barratt Developments (BDEV) 101.20p +2.74%FTSE 250 - FallersPunch Taverns (PUB) 12.22p -80.77%Laird (LRD) 171.30p -8.74%Lamprell (LAM) 371.10p -3.33%Rathbone Brothers (RAT) 1,126.00p -1.92%Brown (N.) Group (BWNG) 280.60p -1.54%TalkTalk Telecom Group (TALK) 141.00p -1.05%COLT Group SA (COLT) 120.60p -0.99%Telecom Plus (TEP) 684.50p -0.80%Fidelity China Special Situations (FCSS) 94.50p -0.53%Dignity (DTY) 796.00p -0.50%