(Reuters) -London stocks rose on Thursday, boosted by industrials and energy stocks, while investors assessed corporate earnings and awaited a key inflation report from the U.S. due later in the day.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 advanced 0.4% by 0956 GMT, while the domestically focussed mid-cap index also added 0.4%.
In the U.S., consumer inflation data is expected on the day. Economists expect prices to have picked up in August, but that is unlikely to derail a much-anticipated rate cut from the Federal Reserve next week.
Aerospace and defence companies added 1.6% on Thursday; BAE Systems rose 4%, Chemring Group up 2%, Babcock gained 1.4% and Avon added 5.2%.
Precious metal miners advanced 0.9% with Fresnillo rising 2% and Hochschild Mining up 1.7%.
Energy stocks gained 0.6% with heavyweights Shell and BP up 0.5% and 0.9%, respectively.
Heavyweight bank stocks rose 0.3%.
Consumer staples stocks such as Tesco, Associated British Foods and British American Tobacco also advanced.
On the flip side, personal goods stocks declined 0.6%, with Burberry falling 0.9%.
Industrial support services sector edged down 0.5%. Experian lost 1.4% and Hays fell 2.4%.
Industrial miners declined, with Anglo American down 0.8% and Glencore losing 1.2%.
Among other stocks, Compass Group rose 2.7% after Deutsche Bank upgraded the food catering firm’s rating to “buy” from “hold”.
Ticketing firm Trainline jumped 8.9%, to top the mid-cap index, after saying it expects to report annual adjusted core profit at the top end of its forecast range.
Gambling tech firm Playtech hit a record high and was last up 6.4% on positive first-half results.
Meanwhile, a survey showed house prices showed the most widespread falls in more than a year-and-a-half in August as new buyer demand weakened.
Additionally, finance minister Rachel Reeves promised tax reform to help small business expansion.
(Reporting by Sukriti Gupta; Editing by Sahal Muhammed)
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