U.K. stocks pushed higher on Monday, shaking off earlier weakness from banks and global malaise, including trade tensions, as well as a report showing weakness in the country’s services sector.
A pullback for the pound also gave stocks some breathing room—a stronger pound can weigh on the FTSE 100, as the index’s multinational companies generate most of their sales in other currencies.
How markets are performing
The FTSE 100 UKX, +0.40% rose 0.4% to 7,125.93, after Friday’s lower finish, but had logged the best weekly gain since late September.
The pound GBPUSD, +0.3779% was buying $1.3006, up from $1.2966 late Friday in New York. Sterling also strengthened against the euro EURGBP, -0.3644% with the shared currency buying £0.8763, down 0.2%.
What’s moving markets
But the pound retraced some of its stronger gains from earlier after October services PMI missed expectations. The index stood at 52.2 last month, versus 53.3 forecast. Investors will get preliminary third-quarter gross domestic product data on Friday.
The currency’s gains were spurred by a report by The Sunday Times that Prime Minister Theresa May has secured customs deal with the European Union. This deal would avoid a feared hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. May is also in the process of working out an agreement for a free-trade deal with the European Union, according to the report.
U.K. investors will keep watch on global risk events this week as well—trade tensions, U.S. mid term elections on Tuesday and a two-day Federal Reserve meeting that wraps up Thursday.
Read: Stock-market bulls hope midterms revive upside momentum
Plus: Economy sizzles on cusp of 2018 election, but not all lost ground has been reclaimed
Stocks in focus
Resource stocks led the gains, with Rio Tinto PLC RIO, +0.10% RIO, +2.53% climbed over 2%, BHP Billiton PLC BHP, -0.91% BLT, +1.56% rose 1% and Anglo American PLC AAL, +1.62% added 1.5%. Royal Dutch Shell PLC RDS.A, -1.39% RDSA, +1.37% rose over 1% and BP PLC BP, -2.46% BP., +1.43% rose 0.8%.
Lloyds Banking Group PLC LLOY, -0.76% LLOY, -0.76% fell 1.2% after a poor performance in a European bank stress test late last week. Barclays PLC BARC, +0.02% BCS, +0.11% was modestly after it also logged a weak result in those tests.
Micro Focus International PLC MCRO, +6.37% led the gainers with a more than 6% jump, after saying fiscal 2018 results will come in at the better end of its guidance range.
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