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Feb wage earnings up 6.6% vs est of 6.2%
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Entain shoots to FTSE 100 top on higher Q1 revenue
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Easyjet rises on upbeat forecast
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AstraZeneca rises on new COVID antibody
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FTSE 100 up 0.4%, FTSE 250 adds 0.1%
(Adds comment; updates prices, details)
By Shristi Achar A and Johann M Cherian
April 18 (Reuters) - Britain's commodity-heavy index
rose on Tuesday, boosted by a surge in miners after upbeat China
data, while gambling firm Entain logged its best performance in
more than a year-and-a-half after reporting strong quarterly
results.
Entain Plc surged 7.2% after the Ladbrokes owner reported higher quarterly net gaming revenues, helped by acquisitions and robust demand in its retail shops. The FTSE 350 travel and leisure sector rose 2.2%, also boosted by easyJet Plc , which added 1.6% after the airline forecast 2023 profit above market expectations. "One might imagine that in a weaker economic environment sectors like leisure would suffer," said Richard Flax, chief investment officer at Moneyfarm. "But there still seems to be decent pricing power in developed markets due to pent-up demand from COVID." The FTSE 100 increased 0.4%, rising for the eighth straight day and clocking its longest run of gains in about 29 months. The mid-cap FTSE 250 was up 0.1%.
Precious metal miners jumped 2.4% as data showed China's economy grew at a faster-than-expected pace of 4.5% in the first quarter, lifting bullion prices. The FTSE 100 has gained 3.6% so far this month, more than recovering its March losses.
All the component sectors of the UK indexes are on course for gains for April, with commodity-linked stocks and defensives among top performers.
Meanwhile, data showed February pay growth rose faster than anticipated, boosting chances of a 25 basis point interest rate hike next month. Among other moves, AstraZeneca Plc climbed 1.8% after the vaccine maker said it was confident that its new version of COVID antibody treatment could protect immunocompromised patients against all known virus variants.
Cineworld jumped 61.5% after the embattled cinema chain operator abandoned the planned sale of its businesses in Eastern Europe and Israel. (Reporting by Shristi Achar A and Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema, Savio D'Souza and Alex Richardson)
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