London's FTSE 100 rises as financials, defence offset energy weakness

FTSE 100 Gains: Financial and Defence Stocks Lift Index Despite Energy Weakness

Market Overview and Key Sector Movements

Nov 10 (Reuters) - UK's FTSE 100 edged higher on Tuesday as heavyweight financial and defence stocks offset weakness in energy shares, while investors assessed hawkish comments from Bank of England Deputy Governor Clare Lombardelli.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index rose 0.2% to 10,811.28 points by 1033 GMT, while the midcap FTSE 250 was up 0.6%.

Sector Performance Highlights

Aerospace and Defence Lead Gains

• Aerospace and defence led sectoral gains, rising 2.4%, as Rolls-Royce climbed 3.3% to rank among the top performers on the FTSE 100. Melrose Industries and Babcock International Group also advanced over 1% each

Financials Boost the Index

• Financials provided the biggest boost to the index, with Lion Finance Group rising 3.6% to top the blue-chip index, while Prudential and Barclays gained 3% and 2.2%, respectively

Energy Sector Weakness

• On the flip side, the energy sector led declines, falling 2.2% after Brent crude slipped below $90 a barrel as US President Donald Trump downplayed further military action against Iran, easing Middle East supply concerns [O/R]

Investor Sentiment and Economic Data

Bank of England Commentary

• Investors parsed comments from BoE Deputy Governor Clare Lombardelli, who said in a Guardian interview that she would not rule out a December rate hike​‌

• Money markets priced in a roughly 50% chance of a 25-basis-point BoE rate hike in December​‌, according to LSEG data

Retail Spending Trends

• On the data front, British retail spending rose modestly in October despite higher petrol prices, as households pared back spending in some categories ahead of Black Friday deals, a British Retail Consortium survey showed

• Britons bought more essentials after the government's "Be Ready" campaign launched, though Worldpanel by Numerator found no signs of panic buying

Notable Individual Stock Movers

Vodafone's Performance

• Among individual movers, Vodafone fell 1.1% even after the telecoms firm raised its full-year profit and cash flow guidance

Marks & Spencer Outlook

• Marks & Spencer rose 1.9%, as the clothing and food retailer forecast profit growth ahead of sales over the medium term

Reporting Credits

(Reporting by Tharuniyaa Lakshmi in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)