FTSE breaks through 6000 barrier

At 9 am the benchmark was up 41.3 points or 0.7% at 6,034.3, after reaching 6,044 early on. The index was last at this level in March 2001. The all-time high for the index, of 6,930.2, came on 30 December 1999. Insurers were among the day's main gainers, with Prudential and Legal & General topping the list. The market's mood was further boosted by Vodafone after it confirmed it had sold its Japanese arm to Softbank for a higher-than-expected £8.9bn. Vodafone shares rose 2%, or 3.25p, to 133.25p after it said it would return £6bn to shareholders. Meanwhile, the wider market was...