Shares in British banks were broadly up on the FTSE 100 in morning trading following a positive note from JP Morgan.

JP Morgan raised its rating on the banking sector from "overweight" to "neutral", leading to a rise in the share price of three out of Britain's "big four" banks. However shares in HSBC declined, perhaps due to greater exposure to the devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan on Friday.

By 10:30 shares in Lloyds Banking Group were up 1.99 per cent to 62.40 pence per share, RBS shares rose 0.51 per cent to 43.07 pence per share and Barclays shares climbed 0.94 per cent to 301.55 pence per share.

HSBC shares were down 0.03 per cent to 657.40 pence per share.

Overall the FTSE 100 was up 0.12 per cent to 5,835.40.

Barclays HSBC FTSE Japan