Oct 21 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 edged higher on Wednesday, supported by gains in oil majors and financial stocks, though hotter-than-expected inflation reinforced expectations of a Bank of England interest rate hike, limiting the index's upside.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index rose 0.1% to 10,752.88 points, after two sessions of declines in a row. The midcap FTSE 250 was up 0.3%.
• UK inflation rose to 3.5% in September, above economists' expectations of 3.4%, as the US-Israeli war on Iran pushed
up energy prices
• Money markets are near certain of a 25-basis-point BoE rate hike in November, according to LSEG data
• Finance Minister John Healey came under pressure ahead of next week's budget after official data showed government borrowing exceeded forecasts for a second straight month, pushing public debt above £3 trillion ($4.01 trillion)
• "Widespread expectations of relatively stable economic policy and a market-friendly budget limit the upside for the FTSE 100, particularly if such a budget were to manifest itself primarily in a stronger GBP," Duncan Toms, multi-asset strategist at HSBC, said in a note, reiterating a neutral stance on UK stocks
• Energy giants gained, with BP and Shell among the biggest boosts to the FTSE 100
• Britain approved the Jackdaw North Sea gas field, ending years of legal and political wrangling as the Labour government seeks to balance its climate goals with energy security concerns
• Asset manager Aberdeen Group, among the top losers on the FTSE 100, fell 4% after flagging a slower-than-expected return to adviser-segment inflows
• Midcaps: bicycles-to-car parts retailer Halfords dropped about 8.6%, the steepest on the FTSE 250, after first-half results
(Reporting by Darshan Kumar and Medha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Joyjeet Das and Shailesh Kuber)
