FTSE 100 gains for second straight week on BoE's dovish tilt; Phoenix shines

At top of the index was Phoenix Group, adding 8.4% after the insurer said it expected to increase profits by nearly a half and generate higher operating cash by 2026. The life insurance sector led sectoral advances, with a 2.2% gain.

UK's FTSE 100 closed at its highest level in a year on Friday as investors continued to cheer the dovish tilt in the Bank of England's monetary policy, while insurer Phoenix Group notched its best day in four years after issuing an upbeat forecast.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 rose 0.6% to clinch its second straight week of gains, powered by a near 2% rise on Thursday after the BoE said the economy is moving in the direction for interest rate cuts. At top of the index was Phoenix Group, adding 8.4% after the insurer said it expected to increase profits by nearly a half and generate higher operating cash by 2026.

The life insurance sector led sectoral advances, with a 2.2% gain. "Life insurer Phoenix is incredibly popular with retirees thanks to its generous dividends and shareholders will be celebrating after better-than-expected results and a positive outlook for cash generation and debt reduction," said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.

Meanwhile, the pound fell to its lowest in a month after data showed UK consumer spending stagnated in February and BoE Governor Andrew Bailey said rate cuts were in play this year, boosting dollar-earners like Unilever and Reckitt Benckiser on the benchmark index. On the other hand, the mid-cap FTSE 250 index slipped 0.1%, hauled by a 7.4% tumble in Darktrace after a technology growth fund advised by private equity firm KKR fully exited its investment in the cybersecurity firm.

Among others, J D Wetherspoon said sales growth had slowed at the start of its fiscal second half and that margins were still below pre-pandemic levels, sending its shares down 6.3%. Legal & General climbed 1.4% after Reuters reported that the insurer and asset manager shelved a plan to obtain a China business licence and more than halved onshore headcount.

JD Sports fell 6.3% after its U.S. counterpart Nike warned that its revenue in the first half of fiscal 2025 would shrink by a low single-digit percentage.

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