British Equities Edge Up Amid Corporate Earnings and Interest Rate Speculation

In a day marked by anticipation and reaction, British equities closed with slight gains as investors considered a wave of corporate earnings reports while eyeing a potential Bank of England interest rate cut set for Thursday.

The FTSE 100 index climbed by 0.2%, marking its third consecutive day of growth after plummeting to a four-month low the previous Friday, with a focus on blue-chip stocks driving the slight upturn. Concurrently, the FTSE 250 index showed a modest increase of 0.1%.

Energy stocks emerged as top performers, witnessing a 1.8% hike. This was in response to rising oil prices after U.S. President Donald Trump enforced new tariffs on India for importing Russian crude, with heavyweights such as Shell and BP bolstering the benchmark with increases of 1.3% and 3.1% respectively.

(With inputs from agencies.)