Banks, miners boost UK stocks as recovery optimism back in focus By Reuters

(Reuters) – British shares rose on Tuesday, boosted by gains in banks and miners as investors turned their focus to vaccine-led economic recovery optimism, while Royal Mail (LON:RMG) climbed after announcing a one-off dividend payment.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index was up 0.6%, with bank and mining stocks including HSBC Holdings (LON:HSBA), Barclays (LON:BARC), Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU), Rio Tinto (LON:RIO), Anglo American (LON:AAL) and BHP being the biggest gainers.

Oil heavyweights BP (LON:BP) and Royal Dutch Shell (LON:RDSa) were also among the biggest boosts, rising between 0.5% and 1%.

Bank of England rate-setter Gertjan Vlieghe said Britain’s economy would still need help from the central bank to restore it to its pre-pandemic growth path, even with a fast recovery and some inflation this year.

The domestically focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index climbed 0.6%, led by industrials stocks.

Imperial Brands (LON:IMB) Plc fell 0.7%, even after maintaining its full-year adjusted profit growth forecast, as it expected “significantly reduced” losses from next generation products and increased investments in its business.

Royal Mail added 2.8%, after saying it would pay a one-off dividend for the year ending March following recent upgrades to its financial outlook on the back of a surge in parcel demand during the pandemic and a recent pick-up in letter volumes.