LONDON (AFP) - Blue chip shares made gains thanks to a solid performance across the Atlantic and positive results from mining stocks.
The FTSE 100 index closed 34.5 points higher at 4,591.0 having broken through the 4,600.0 benchmark in late afternoon trade on Friday.
Volume was moderate, with some 2.722 billion shares changing hands in 219,420 deals.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was meanwhile up 47.8 at 10,292.3 while the Nasdaq composite was 4.07 higher at 1,908.
Initial gains in New York were tempered by news that the University of Michigan consumer sentiment index slipped to 95.8 in September from 95.9 in August -- lower than the expected reading of 96.5.
However, this was countered by positive news from Ford as the car giant raised its third-quarter and full-year earnings forecasts.
In London, the FTSE 100 benefitted from a rally in the mining sector which was triggered by strong copper prices and upbeat broker comment.
BHP Billiton rose 18-3/4 pence to 556-1/4 to end the day atop the FTSE 100 leadboard.
Rio Tinto was up 38 pence at 1,448, while Anglo American was 33 pence higher at 1,296.
US influences were a spur to Smith and Nephew, with a 16 pence rise to 496 pence as traders reacted record first-quarter numbers from US peer Biomet Inc.
Hilton Group was the second biggest riser on the FTSE 100 after Cazenove upgraded its stance on firm to 'outperform' from 'in-line'.
The positive comments helped Hilton shares soar by 3.48 percent to close at 282.50 pence.
Cable and Wireless (C and W) topped the blue chip fallers, shedding 2.73 percent of their value to 107 as brokers highlighted concerns that the telecom firm's figures will be poor next month .
Investec downgraded its rating for C and W to 'reduce' from 'hold' in its preview of the firm's upcoming results.
Bradford and Bingley shares fell by 1.28 percent to close the day as the FTSE 100's second biggest faller. Shares in the building society fell by 3.75 pence to close at 288.25.
Telecom group Vodafone was once again the most traded issue on the FTSE 100, with 270 million shares being exchanged.
Oil group BP meanwhile saw 85.2 million shares being exchanged to finish as the FTSE 100's second most popular stock.