Shares in Arriva raced ahead after the bus and rail group admitted holding merger talks with France's state railway group SNCF.

Peer National Express is also higher.

The dark days appear to be behind specialist mortgage lender Paragon, whose shares are higher after the company's portfolio of loans performed in line, but the group is not yet ready to start lending again.

Shares in sugar and sweetener manufacturer Tate & Lyle have turned a little sour after it said its third quarter performance was marginally below expectations due to lower sales of industrial products in the Americas.

Support services group VT falls back even after saying it has continued to perform well since the end of September, with the order book remaining above £4bn. Acquisition target Mouchel is still refusing to enter into any form of discussions, the company said.

FTSE 250 - Risers
Melrose Resources (MRS) 336.00p +5.00%
Greene King (GNK) 462.10p +4.41%
Punch Taverns (PUB) 86.05p +4.24%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 210.40p +3.95%
Imagination Technologies (IMG) 266.80p +3.89%
National Express Group (NEX) 213.40p +3.84%
Paragon Group Of Companies (PAG) 140.00p +3.70%
Enterprise Inns (ETI) 118.10p +3.60%
Arriva (ARI) 484.20p +3.48%
JKX Oil & Gas (JKX) 278.80p +3.26%

FTSE 250 - Fallers
Ecofin Water & Power Opportunities (ECWO) 134.00p -3.94%
Tate & Lyle (TATE) 391.30p -3.88%
Stobart Group Ltd. (STOB) 128.30p -3.53%
VT Group (VTG) 528.50p -2.31%
Booker Group (BOK) 45.10p -2.11%
PartyGaming (PRTY) 287.20p -1.64%
Keller Group (KLR) 608.00p -1.38%
PayPoint (PAY) 400.00p -1.23%
Britvic (BVIC) 426.80p -1.14%
Dechra Pharmaceuticals (DPH) 474.90p -1.06%

Related share prices
National Express Group (NEX) share price
Tate & Lyle (TATE) share price
Aurora Investment Trust (ARR) share price
Paragon Group Of Companies (PAG) share price
VT Group (VTG) share price