UK's FTSE 100 edges higher as retailers stocks climb

(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock markets, click LIVE/ or type LIVE/ in a news window.) * Petershill Partners up on mulling share buyback plan * Auto Trader falls as JP Morgan trims price target * FTSE 100 up 0.2%, FTSE 250 adds 0.8% (Updated at 1650 GMT) By Siddarth S and Medha Singh March 26 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 ended higher on Tuesday helped by retailers' shares as investors looked to key U.S. inflation data later in the week for more clues on the Federal Reserve's interest rate outlook.

Britain's FTSE 100 ended higher on Tuesday helped by retailers' shares as investors looked to key U.S. inflation data later in the week for more clues on the Federal Reserve's interest rate outlook. Shares of Ocado Group gained 3.3% after online supermarket Ocado Retail, a 50:50 joint venture between Ocado Group and Marks & Spencer, reported a 10.6% increase in revenue in its latest quarter. Marks & Spencer shares advanced nearly 4% while retailers rose 1.9%, leading sectoral gains.

"For Ocado, the UK retail operation is only one of its concerns as it looks to demonstrate to the market that it can achieve sustained profitability with its Ocado Smart Platform one-stop-shop solution for global supermarkets," said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould. The blue-chip FTSE 100 closed 0.2% higher, recovering from a weak start to the session after mixed messages from Fed officials on Monday spurred worries across global markets on the timeline of monetary policy easing.

The domestically-oriented FTSE 250 jumped 0.8% to a fresh one-year high led by 9.5% surge in Petershill Partners

Plc after the investment firm said it was considering launching a tender offer to repurchase up to $100 million shares. The personal goods index, beverages and medical equipment also posted strong sector gains.

After the FTSE 100 index touched a one-year high last week following dovish signals from major central banks, market focus will now shift to the U.S. personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, due on Friday. "The 'wait and see' mood in the markets is continuing with recent exuberance fading as investors look ahead to key consumer inflation data," said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.

Markets across the U.S., Europe and UK will be closed for the Good Friday holiday. On the flipside, chemicals stocks dropped the most among the sectors, falling 1.1%, followed by 0.8% fall in industrial metal miners which tracked lower base metal prices.

Online car marketplace Auto Trader Group slipped about 5% after JP Morgan analysts trimmed price target, citing tough automotive retail market conditions.