9:30AM Upgrades in Vodafone helped the FTSE 100 to a modest advance.
The FTSE 100 in London was 21 points, or 0.4%, higher at 6,207.6 by mid-day.

Advancers

The mobile phone company Vodafone gained 2.7% as analysts upped their numbers following better than expected results on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank stated that although fundamentals remained difficult, there were further potential upside to consensus estimates from industry consolidation and further cost saving.

Another gainer was Old Mutual adding 2.5% as Bear Stearns forecast strong figures from the South Africa-based life assurer later this month. Among mid-caps, recruitment group Hays gained 4.6% on news of strong like for like fee growth of 15% in the first four months of the financial year. Luminar jumped 8.1% after the nightclub operator said it was in the advanced stages on a plan to divest its entertainment division.

Decliners

Of the decliners, Kingfisher shed 3.5% as UBS and Merrill Lynch both cut the owner of retailer B&Q from buy to neutral after a strong run on the shares. The stock has risen 17% in three months. Lonmin fell 2.5% as investors took profits following a 140% jump in earnings at the platinum miner.

Cadbury Schweppes lost 1.7% as Goldman Sachs cut its stance from neutral to sell, arguing the confectioner was vulnerable to further weakness as the sector experiences a tough trading environment. J Sainsbury, the supermarket chain, shed 0.7% after it reported a 60% rise in first-half underlying profit before tax. The stock had performed strongly in the run up to the figures today.

Other news

Cheaper fuel meant the pace of inflation in the UK last month was slower than forecast, an outcome that caused the City of London to trim expectations for further interest rate rises. CPI was at 2.4%, below the 2.6% forecast.

7:30AM Asian markets close mostly higher Wednesday, Japan edges lower.
Asian markets ended mostly higher on Wednesday. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 Average Index ended 0.3% lower to 16243.47. Shares of camera maker Canon gained 0.5%, while electronics and entertainment company Sony shed 0.6%. In construction and steel stocks, Obayashi declined 1.7% and JFE Holdings lost 0.6%.

The Hang Seng Index ended at a record high, gaining 1.1% to finish at 19093.00. China Construction Bank led the advance, surging 6.4% after BOCI raised its rating on the bank to outperform, announcing it believes that strong earnings growth and high profitability will support higher valuation of CCB. Peers Industrial & Commercial Bank of China gained 3.1% and Bank of China advanced 2.5%. Shares of wireless provider China Mobile rose 1.6%.

The Straits Times Index in Singapore advanced 0.6% to 2777.62. Strength in the property and technology sectors also helped lift shares to a record closing high. An upbeat technology sector helped lift Taiwan''s Weighted Price Index, which gained 0.5% to 7236.85. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index, or Kospi, also rose 0.4% to 1412.54. Shares of Samsung Electronics advanced 2% and LG.Philips LCD added 4.2%. Bank shares were hit hard by the announcement of the government of further moves to control property prices. Kookmin Bank shed 1.8% and Woori Finance closed down 1.4%.

In China, the market finished at a five-year closing high, led by advances from air carriers. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.8% to 1922.94, its highest closing level since Aug. 21, 2001, when it closed at 1938.87. The Shenzhen Composite Index added 2.7% to 448.70. Bucking the uptrend were Australia S&P/ASX 200 shedding 0.1% and New Zealand NZX-50 Index ending 0.2% lower. Malaysia KLSE Composite traded flat fell 0.4%, while stock indexes in Thailand traded flat.

6:30AM European markets advanced Wednesday on tech and telecom stocks.
European markets were higher on Wednesday. By mid morning, the FTSE 100 in London climbed 0.5% to 6,214.9, Frankfurt Xetra Dax was up 0.5% to 6,419.88, and the CAC 40 in Paris added 0.4% to 5,499.94.

Advancers

Infineon of Germany, the semiconductor maker, gained 3.4% after Qimonda, its US-listed memory chip unit, reported better than expected fourth-quarter results.

STMicroelectronics, Franco-Italian chipmaker, gained 1.7%, while ASML, the Dutch maker of chip-manufacturing equipment, climbed 1.4%.

Ericsson, the Swedish mobile phone equipment group, gained 1.5% after it announced a trio of contract wins, including a $110 million deal to expand the mobile network of AIS of Thailand.

Alstom, the French heavy engineer, gained 3.2% after Morgan Stanley raised its price target on the company following its stronger than expected results on Monday.

Decliners