The FTSE 100 opened higher in an eventful week on the economic front, with meetings for the Bank of England, the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan, amongst others. An hour into trade, the blue-chip index was 15 points higher at 8,647.
Life assurer Phoenix Group is top of the early leaderboard, up 6.2% after it reported better-than-expected cash results, with a solid solvency position and an improved outlook.
Defence technology supplier QinetiQ Group plunged 15% after it warned that its full-year results will be hit by a £140 million write-down due to restructuring and "challenging" conditions in the US market.
The FTSE 250-listed group said it has also experienced delays to contract awards from the UK Ministry of Defence in the intelligence sector, which represents around 25% of group revenue.
AstraZeneca has topped up its innovative cancer treatment toolkit with a deal to pay up to $1 billion to buy EsoBiotec, a Belgian company that has made clinical breakthroughs in cell therapy, where immune cells are engineered directly within the patient's body.
Meanwhile, monthly housing data from Rightmove shows the highest number of houses on the market in a decade for any buyers who miss the upcoming deadline for the stamp duty tax break that expires at the end of this month.
The average price of property coming to market for sale rose 1.1% this month to £371,870, in line with the long-term March average.
