LONDON MARKETS: U.K. Stocks Log Best Week In Three Years; Next Shares Fall

By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch

LONDON (MarketWatch)--U.K. stocks climbed Friday, with gains for resource shares guiding the FTSE 100 to its best week in three years.

The FTSE 100 surged 1.2% to 6,545.27. The gain was paced by advances for energy and mining stocks which also helped the resource-heavy index gird itself from an intraday downturn in the broader European market. The resources sector eventually led the Stoxx Europe 600 to a positive finish, as well.

Among the London session's top gainers, Tullow Oil PLC rose 7%. The producer's shares have been among those in the energy space that have been battered in recent weeks as oil prices have tumbled to five-year lows below $60 a barrel. WTI and Brent crude-oil futures improved during Friday's session, but are facing losses of roughly 45% for the year.

U.K. oil and gas industry officials are warning that the slide in oil prices is having a devastating impact, including threatening jobs, on the North Sea oil industry. It's "nearly impossible to make money at these prices," the Daily Mail newspaper on Thursday quoted Robin Allan, chairman of Brindex, an association of independent explorers, as saying.

Miner Randgold Resources on Friday rose 4.5%, logging its first weekly rise in four weeks, and copper miner Antofagasta PLC picked up 3.4%, marking its first weekly win in three.

The FTSE 100 itself rose 3.9% for the week, which featured "one of the most volatile sessions in many years" on Tuesday, said Bill McNamara, senior technical analyst at Charles Stanley, in a note this week.

Shares of Tesco PLC ended 5.6% higher. The shares have risen since Tuesday after Kantar Worldpanel said the supermarket chain over the past three months logged its best sales performance since June.

WPP PLC shares rose 2.1% following an upgrade for the advertising firm to buy from neutral at Citi. Separately, WPP said Thursday it has purchased Mexico City-based Clarus Digital S ADA de CV for an undisclosed amount, with the purchase aimed at boosting WPP's digital-marketing services.

Shares of International Consolidated Airlines Group Ltd. were up 1.3%, a day after the parent of British Airways said its offer to buy Irish flag carrier Aer Lingus Group PLC was rejected. Aer Lingus said IAG's proposal fundamentally undervalues its prospects. Shares of Aer Lingus slipped 0.3% Friday.

Decliners in London trade included Next PLC , down 0.9% after Jefferies downgraded the fashion retailer to hold from buy, saying it believes the company's "competitive advantage is diminishing."

Also lower, shares of utility SSE PLC were off 1.3%.

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