UK stocks: FTSE 100 index adds 1 pct

The day was the index's best session since the start of the month, with banks helping it return to 6,300 for the first time this week.

The index rose around 8 percent in January to reach a 2013 peak of 6,354.46 points, before slipping back over the course of February to trade below 6,300.

"The main trend is up despite the corrective break last week. Typically, buyers look for value during a correction since they are confident in trading the trend," James Hyerczyk, technical analyst at Autochartist, said in a trading note.

While 6,300 acted as a support for the index during January, it had put a cap on the market during February until now.

The rally was broad-based, with every sector bar materials contributing to the rally, including stocks that are usually less sensitive to swings in economic optimism.

Supporting the day's gains was a late surge by pharmaceutical company Reckitt Benckiser, up 3 percent after striking a deal to sell Bristol-Myers Squibb drugs in Latin America.

"The stock was rampant all of last year, and the market obviously likes this deal," Curr said.

"I don't know whether you'd want to be buying it right here though, as it's a nice safe stock ... If things started to get a bit more ugly, however, it might be a stock that you'd want to go back to."