LONDON - Next, a British clothing and home products retailer, soared 9.67 percent, the top gainer of the blue chips. Randgold Resources and Imperial Brands increased by 3.43 percent and 3.14 percent, respectively.
The international medical products and technologies company ConvaTec Group was the worst performer in the blue chips, with its shares losing 6.38 percent. Mondi, an international packaging and paper group, dropped 2.70 percent.
Shire, a global specialty biopharmaceutical company, fell 1.95 percent.