The blue chip FTSE 100 rose 1.4% by 0820 GMT after far outperforming regional peers with a 0.9% rise in 2022.

The more domestically-focused FTSE 250 midcaps rose 1.1%, while the broader pan-European STOXX 600 gained 0.7%.

As crude prices rose, oil majors Shell and BP gained in early trading, pushing the broader energy sector up 4.2%. [O/R]

Markets were also watching for UK manufacturing PMI data for the month of December, which is expected to have held steady year-on-year.

Cineworld dropped 17.6% after the British cinema operator said it would not sell any of its assets individually, and that it had not held discussions with AMC Entertainment about the sale of any of its theatres.

Rolls-Royce rose 4.9% to top the FTSE 100, after Jefferies raised the airplane engine maker to "buy" from "hold".

(Reporting by Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)