London stocks gain on set of strong corporate earnings; Experian jumps

British shares rose on Tuesday as a raft of strong corporate earnings updates brewed optimism around a post-pandemic economic rebound, while fresh Brexit negotiations sparked concerns about a no-deal exit for the UK from the European Union.

British shares rose on Tuesday as a raft of strong corporate earnings updates brewed optimism around a post-pandemic economic rebound, while fresh Brexit negotiations sparked concerns about a no-deal exit for the UK from the European Union. Britain began a fresh round of Brexit trade talks by warning the EU that it was ramping up preparations to leave the bloc without an agreement as the two sides bicker over rules that govern nearly $1 trillion in trade.

The FTSE 100 rose 0.6%, gaining for a second straight session, with financials and service-based companies gaining the most, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 added 0.2%. Data analytics firm Experian jumped 4.1% to the top of the FTSE 100 after posting higher second-quarter revenue.

British retailer Halfords gained 3.3% after saying its underlying sales of cycling goods surged 59.1% in the 20 weeks to Aug. 21.