UK's midcap index at record high ahead of Bank of England rate call

FTSE 250 Index Reaches Record High as Bank of England Rate Decision Looms

Market Overview and Key Drivers

FTSE Indices Performance

Nov 5 (Reuters) - Britain's midcap FTSE 250 index hit a record high and the blue-chip FTSE 100 rose to a near three-month peak on Thursday, boosted by bank stocks ahead of the Bank of England's policy decision.

The FTSE 100 index rose 0.5% to 10,888.64 points by 1034 GMT, while the FTSE 250 climbed 0.6% to its all-time high.

Bank of England Rate Decision

Expected Rate Hike

• The BoE is widely expected to deliver a 25-basis-point hike on Thursday, its first rate increase in three years, as inflation pressures linked to the US-Israeli war on Iran mount

Global Central Bank Actions

• Major central banks such as the US Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank have already raised rates, and more hikes are priced in

UK Inflation Data

• Britain's inflation held at 3.5% in September, well above the BoE's target of 2%, data released last month showed

Sector Performance Highlights

Banking Sector

Banking Stocks Rally

• After rallying on Wednesday, banking stocks extended gains, rising 1.3% to an over-one-week high. HSBC was the biggest boost with a 1.2% jump

Precious Metals and Mining

• Precious metal miners rose 5%, boosted by gold prices climbing to a two-week high, after marking their biggest one-day jump in three months in the last session [GOL/]

Other Sectors

• But pharma and energy sectors declined 0.3% and 0.5% respectively

Individual Stock Movers

Telecom Sector

• Telecom firm BT Group gained 3.5% after beating second-quarter revenue estimates; the broader sector rose 1.2%

Defence and Pharmaceuticals

• Defence contractor BAE Systems slid 4.1% to the bottom of the FTSE 100. The loss builds on Wednesday's 4% fall after the Democratic sweep in the US midterm elections raised concerns of a tighter military budget

• Hikma Pharmaceuticals bottomed the FTSE 250 with a 6% drop after the drugmaker lowered the higher end of its annual profit forecast range

Reporting Credits

(Reporting by Darshan Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Sahal Muhammed)