Lana

Investors spread the cheer to a host of other chip-making equipment and memory stocks, including Europe's biggest company, ASML, which climbed 8% to a record high.

Before we dive into the next story, it's time for our daily check-in with Carl.

You've got questions, he's got your answers.

Carl, what have you got for us?

thanks carl next up the uk economy grew by a better than expected 0.3 in november the strongest monthly reading since june's midsummer nights economists weren't expecting this result they thought the uk economy would only edge up about 0.1 in november after october's surprise 0.1 dip

Services grew 0.3% while manufacturing jumped 2.1%, helped by car production recovering after a cyber attack disrupted Jaguar Land Rover in the fall.

If you look at the three months to November, the economy grew 0.1% rather than slipping into the small contraction economists had penciled in.

For the Bank of England, that makes a February interest rate cut feel less pressing.

That said, traders still expect rates to come down later this year.

Investors spent years giving the UK a wide berth after Brexit's political chaos and the pandemic shock, but they're starting to drift back.

You can see why.

Corporate balance sheets look healthier and dividends are still generous, while valuations haven't yet caught up.

That's an attractive combo.

Banks, defense firms, and miners have done most of the work so far.

And if inflation keeps easing, expectations of cheaper borrowing costs could help the economy and the stock rally build from here.

The UK has a long-running productivity problem.

In other words, output per worker hasn't improved much over time.

That's partly because the economy hasn't been very good at shifting people and money out of dud firms into better ones.

But now, higher interest rates, energy costs, and wages are putting pressure on the weakest firms, which could lead to business closures and job losses.

That would be painful in the short term, but it could pay if those workers and that capital later move into stronger, more efficient businesses.