The FTSE 100 edged higher on Tuesday as Shell led a rally in energy stocks that offset a drop in precious metals miners. A stronger dollar pushed gold lower, dragging the mining sector down, while consumer names ranked among the top performers.
London's FTSE 100 rose 0.2% to 10,673.85 points by 1057 GMT on Tuesday, held up by energy shares as the midcap FTSE 250 slipped 0.2%.
Shell drives the energy rally
Energy stocks climbed 1.9%, with Shell up 2.4% after the oil major raised its second-quarter gas production forecast and flagged significantly stronger gas trading than the previous quarter. BP added 0.9% alongside it.
Shell tied its stronger trading outlook to heightened volatility during the Middle East conflict. Oil prices also rose after reports of attacks on vessels near the Strait of Hormuz revived fears of disruptions to shipping through the transit route. Brent crude rose to $72.95 a barrel from $72.13.
A stronger dollar pulls miners down
On the other side, precious metals miners fell 1.9% as gold slipped under pressure from a stronger U.S. dollar.
Gold traded at $4,132.00 an ounce, down from $4,148.94 the day before. The drop hit the sector, with Antofagasta losing 2.5%, Anglo American shedding 2.3% and Rio Tinto declining 1.8%.
Consumer names and macro backdrop
Consumer-focused stocks were also among the top performers, with Burberry, Diageo and Unilever rising 3% to 3.7% each. British house prices offered a mild positive, rising 0.2% in June for their first monthly increase since February, though Lloyds said the outlook stayed clouded by economic uncertainty.
Attention stayed on the NATO summit in Turkey, where allies unveiled arms deals worth tens of billions of dollars before a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump.
Sources: Reuters, MarketScreener
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