The FTSE 100 inched higher on Tuesday in a choppy trading session, buoyed by softer US inflation data and President Donald Trump’s decision to abandon plans for a fee on cargo transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
US annual inflation slowed to 3.5% in June from 4.2% in May, undershooting forecasts of 3.8%. The weaker reading led investors to scale back expectations of further monetary tightening by the Federal Reserve. Market sentiment was further lifted after Trump scrapped his proposed 20% transit fee in favour of investment agreements with Gulf states, indicating that revenue would instead be generated through future US investments.
Energy and financial stocks led the advance. Shell gained 0.9%, while BP rose 1.6%. Among banks, HSBC climbed 1.7%, Lloyds Banking Group added 1%, and Standard Chartered advanced 1.6%. Miners were also strong performers, with Rio Tinto up 3% and Glencore 3.2% higher.
On the downside, AstraZeneca fell more than 1.5%, GSK slipped nearly 2%, and both Unilever and Rolls-Royce eased about 0.6%.
