Energy stocks, banks push FTSE 100 higher as virus fears persist

Energy and banking stocks helped the FTSE 100 rebound on Tuesday after surging virus cases and fears of an economic slowdown pushed the index to a two-month low in the previous session.


Reuters | Updated: 20-07-2021 13:13 IST | Created: 20-07-2021 12:59 IST
Energy stocks, banks push FTSE 100 higher as virus fears persist
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Energy and banking stocks helped the FTSE 100 rebound on Tuesday after surging virus cases and fears of an economic slowdown pushed the index to a two-month low in the previous session. The FTSE 100 gained 1.1% with HSBC Holdings and BP being the top boosts.

Banks jumped 1.3% after Catherine Mann, a top economist who will soon join the Bank of England's rate-setting committee, joined interest-rate setter Jonathan Haskel to say cutting stimulus support too early was not the right option. A recent jump in inflation above the BoE's 2% target since May had raised worries over the central bank pulling back support sooner than expected.

The domestically-focussed mid-cap index rose 0.6%. Among stocks, global miner Anglo American jumped 1.8% after it said its production rose by 20% in the second quarter, driven by strong diamond and platinum output.

British airline EasyJet gained 1.5% after it said it would fly 60% of its pre-pandemic capacity in the July-September period, a big jump from the 17% it flew in the previous quarter, as COVID-19 restrictions ease and demand across Europe grows.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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