Shares in Britain closed above the 6,000 level on Friday, for the first time since June 2008, as British equities looked set for their strongest December performance since 1987.

And in Toronto, the main stock index ticked higher on Friday, keeping it on track to end the year at its highest level since the 2008 financial crisis.

The FTSE 100 in London rose 12.85 points, or 0.2 percent, to 6,008.92. The British index is up 8.4 percent this month. The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index rose 11.96 points, or 0.1 percent, at 13,383.16. It was its highest close since the end of August 2008. In its shortened trading day, rising oil prices and merger activity lifted energy and financial shares.

Markets in the United States and most European countries were closed Friday, though the FTSE and the CAC 40 in Paris were open for a half-day. The Paris exchange declined 10.93 points, or 0.28 percent.

Trading was thin, with volumes at the two European exchanges under 10 percent of their 90-day daily average.

“The index turned around in the closing auction” in London, said Jimmy Yates, head of equities at CMC Markets. “Clearly the lack of volume helped with the sudden rebound.”

“There is plenty of Christmas cheer and good will out there to see the index close above 6,000,” Mr. Yates said. “Equities remain the preferred asset class.”

Stocks have lately been buoyed by expectations of a brighter economic outlook in the United States, with further stimulus, and continuing strength in China and India. But some analysts were cautious.

“I am not on the same camp as many investment banks that think we will have a fantastic 2011. We’ve got problems, we’ve got sovereign debt issues. On the peripheries, there are still issues that are outstanding that can clearly come back quite easily,” said Jawaid Afsar, a trader at Securequity.

Fitch on Thursday cut Portugal’s rating by one notch to A-plus, with a negative outlook. Even after the downgrade, however, Fitch’s rating is two notches above that of Standard & Poor’s A-minus. On Friday, Portugal’s share index was flat, while shares of the Portuguese bank Banco BPI fell 0.4 percent.

Banks, which had dragged back the FTSE in early trading, turned flat, shrugging off Europe’s debt concerns, while mining and energy stocks rebounded as investors’ appetite for risk showed no sign of abating payday advance lender. Mining companies, for example, have gained more than 13 percent in December.

But Randgold Resources fell 3.3 percent after it said its fourth-quarter production would be hindered by political tension in Ivory Coast.

Analysts warned there could be a correction in the near term.

“While clearly this index is in a long-term uptrend, short-term traders still feel it is vulnerable to a near-term correction,” said Enis Mehmet at Autochartist.

In Canadian trading, shares in Suncor Energy advanced 0.1 percent, to 38.34 Canadian dollars, and stock in the EnCana Corporation rose 0.4 percent, to 29.02 Canadian dollars.

“Energy keeps chugging along. It’s certainly been the feature the last little while,” said John Kinsey, portfolio manager at Caldwell Securities, pointing to a rise in the price of oil to over $90 a barrel.

The Toronto exchange will reopen on Dec. 29 for a short week ahead of the New Year holiday.

In Asian trading, stocks in Hong Kong and China slipped on Friday, with trading most active in the auto sector, where investors dumped shares in a thin market on new restrictions on car sales in Beijing.

The Hang Seng index fell 0.3 percent, to 22,833.8, in a shortened session. It posted a slight gain of 0.5 percent on the week after two successive weeks of declines.

Shanghai’s main stock index fell 0.7 percent. The Shanghai composite is down 2 percent this week as a shortfall of funds in the financial system curbed the amount of cash available for stock trading. The money market is experiencing an acute squeeze after a series of official monetary tightening steps since mid-October.

News of Beijing’s decision to limit car registrations to tackle traffic congestion in the capital prompted a sell-off in auto stocks, although some analysts played down the move as a knee-jerk reaction.

“The overall stock market is weak, not only the auto sector,” said Chen Shaodan, a senior analyst at China Development Bank Securities in Beijing. “People scrambling for money needed to sell some stocks and they made the auto news an easy excuse.”

Indexes in Britain and Canada Climb to Levels Last Hit Before the 2008 Crisis