An agreement to boost the eurozone bailout fund lifted London’s leading shares index today and helped it finish the first quarter of 2012 with gains of 3.5%.
The 17 EU nations will increase the fund to £585.4billion in a bid to stop the crisis escalating.
The FTSE 100 Index, which has suffered three days of declines, closed 26.4 points higher at 5,768.5.
Banks benefited from the day’s improved sentiment, with Barclays up 1.1p at 235.3p, HSBC adding 7.7p to 554.8p and Lloyds rising 0.2p to 33.6p.
The heavily-weighted mining sector also drove the market higher after a weaker US dollar gave a boost to commodity prices. Antofagasta was up 30p to £11.52 and Rio Tinto jumped 70.5p to £34.46.
Pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca made slight gains after a US district court ruled its patent for depression treatment Seroquel XR was valid. Shares were up 0.5p at £27.79.
Outside the top flight, pork producer Cranswick was down 6p at 805p despite unveiling a 10% jump in like-for-like sales in the three months to March 31 across all its products.
Defence firm QinetiQ enjoyed a 6% rise after the Ministry of Defence said it had agreed to relax its control over the company. Shares rose 9.6p to 159.3p.
The biggest Footsie risers were Petrofac up 83p at £17.40, Weir Group ahead 66p at £17.64, Man Group up 4.8p at 134.8p, and Evraz ahead 11.9p at 369.5p.
The biggest Footsie fallers were Shire down 98p at £20.20, Randgold Resources off 100p at £53.70, Vodafone down 2.3p at 172.2p, and British American Tobacco off 33p at 3,150.5p.
Elaine McLachlan, of investment manager and financial planning specialist Brewin Dolphin in Inverness, noted that risers included eye care specialist Optos gaining 4.3% to 247.8p.
Fallers included electronic surveillance firm IndigoVision, down 5.5% to 357.5p, Plexus Holdings off 4.1% at 116p and Aberdeen-based transport firm FirstGroup down 3.9% at 237.8p.