Marks and Spencer attracted a flurry of late buying on Thursday as the overall London market took time out to consolidate its recent gains.

M&S ended up 1.9 per cent to 377p, bringing its gains since September 20 to 9.2 per cent. The gains have partly been down to expectations that a trading update on October 11 will deliver the first indications that chief executive Stuart Rose’s turnaround plan is beginning to bear fruit.