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At 09:00 GMT the index was up 52 points, Citywire reports, taking it to 5,314 points.
The news that Dubai is to get financial assistance to help it pay off the money it owes helped Standard Chartered shares to climb 74p to £15.84, with the bank's stock also being boosted by Credit Suisse giving a rating upgrade.
Market strategist Joshua Raymond said the funding means "companies with direct or indirect exposures to Dubai's debt" are likely to gain over the course of the day.
Elsewhere, there were jumps for a number of mining companies, including Rio Tinto, Lonmin, Anglo American and BHP Billiton, while Lloyds Banking Group began the day 0.5p higher at 56.74p.
The bank had announced that over 95 per cent of new shares it has made available as part of a rights issue have been taken up by investors.
Posted by Greg Secker
