(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock markets, click or type LIVE/ in a news window)
FTSE 100 unchanged, FTSE 250 down 0.4%
UK approves Sizewell C nuclear plant
Compass raises profit forecast, buys Vermaat in $1.8 bln deal
July 22 (Reuters) – London’s main stock indexes were mixed on Tuesday as investors parsed a spate of corporate earnings, and awaited the release of key economic data this week.
The benchmark FTSE 100 was flat by 0944 GMT, after registering a record closing high on Monday. The domestically oriented midcap FTSE 250 lost 0.4%.
Industrial miners rose 1.1%, tracking a rise in copper prices, buoyed by hopes for firmer Chinese demand. Glencore gained 2.2%, while Rio Tinto rose 1.1%.
Homebuilders and household goods stocks led sectoral losses, falling 1.6%. Vistry down 2.7%.
Data showed Britain borrowed more than expected in June as a jump in inflation pushed up the government’s debt costs.
In company news, British food catering firm Compass Group rose 6.1% to the top of the blue-chip index, after it agreed to buy European premium food services business Vermaat Groep for about 1.5 billion euros ($1.75 billion), including debt and also raised its annual profit forecast.
Energy firm Centrica surged 3.9% after Britain approved the 38 billion pound ($51 billion) Sizewell C nuclear plant in eastern England. The company holds a 15% stake in the project.
Greencore jumped 10.5%, to top the FTSE mid-cap index, after the convenience food manufacturer raised its annual profit expectations.
Kier Group fell 5.1%, to the bottom of the mid-cap index, after the British infrastructure and construction group said that its CEO Andrew Davies would be stepping down, and named insider Stuart Togwell as his successor, effective November 1, 2025.
Meanwhile, AstraZeneca on Monday said it plans to invest $50 billion in the U.S. to expand manufacturing and research capabilities as it reacts to White House trade policy.
On the radar this week are UK flash Purchasing Managers’ Index for July and June retail sales data.
(Reporting by Sukriti Gupta; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)
