Britain's top share index rallied nearly 3 percent on its first trading day of 2009 and extended its winning run to four sessions on the back of commodities stocks, according to Reuters. The FTSE 100 closed up 127.62 points, or 2.9 percent, at 4,561.79 on Friday. It closed out 2008 on Wednesday with an annual fall of 31 perecnt -- its worst yearly drop since its launch in 1984. Activity was light today with over 400 million shares changing hands, compared with Wednesday's 242 million and last week's daily average of 511 million. "It's encouraging to see the market pushing upward, as we start this year. Economic forecasts are absolutely dire," said Philip Lawlor, chief portfolio strategist at Nomura. "The caveat is that it's a remarkably thin market." European shares also finished the day higher while U.S. stocks gained.
