FTSE 100 rises ahead of key central bank meetings

By Khushi Singh and Lisa Pauline Mattackal

(Reuters) -London’s benchmark stock indexes ended higher on Monday, led by gains in automobile and parts shares, while investors focussed on a week of key central bank interest rate decisions.

The benchmark FTSE 100 was up 0.1%; while the mid-cap FTSE 250 inched 0.2% higher. Both indexes marked gains for the third consecutive session.

The automobile and parts index touched its highest levels in two months, adding 6.1%, as shares in TI Fluid Systems rose 14.1% after the automotive fluid storage maker rejected ABC Technologies’ revised buyout proposal.

The travel and leisure index advanced 0.6%, tracking 15.1% gains in Playtech Plc after the gambling technology firm said it expects 2024 adjusted core profit to be slightly ahead of market expectations.

The life insurance sector was the bottom performer, slipping 0.9% after insurer Phoenix Group fell 5.3%, the most on the FTSE 100, after halting the sale process for its SunLife business.

The pound rose against the dollar on Monday, ahead of this week’s UK inflation data and central bank meeting.

The Bank of England, which meets this Thursday, is expected to leave rates on hold and investors will primarily watch for clues on the BoE’s path for the rest of the year and updates on the pace of its bond sales.

With global growth concerns back in focus, the week’s key event is the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday.

After weeks of back-and-forth due to mixed economic data, traders now see a 61% chance of a heftier 50-bps cut on Wednesday, per the CME’s FedWatch tool.

Among individual stocks, Marks and Spencer climbed 2.9%, hitting its highest level since June 2017 earlier in the session. Both Barclays and Jefferies raised their price target on the retailer’s stock.

Britain’s housing market recovered momentum in September, as the BoE’s first rate cut in more than three years and greater political certainty after July 4’s election boosted activity.

(Reporting by Khushi Singh, Lisa Mattackal in Bengaluru; Editing by Sumana Nandy)