London's FTSE 100 rises as Shell boosts energy stocks

Oct 29 - London’s FTSE 100 rose on Thursday as strong profit growth at Shell lifted energy stocks, while upbeat US economic data did little to alter bets on interest rate hikes.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed up 0.26% at 10,722.07 points, while the midcap FTSE 250 climbed 0.14%.

• Shell rose 2.1% after the oil major reported its highest quarterly profit since 2022, and increased its share buyback program

• Energy stocks outperformed the broader market, with the sector climbing nearly 1.64% despite a dip in oil prices

• Conversely, Haleon slid about 15%, its biggest one-day fall in its four years as a publicly listed firm, after the consumer health company cut its organic revenue growth forecast

• An exclusive Reuters report also said Haleon Chief Executive Brian McNamara warned staff of "difficult choices" ahead after the sales miss

• Haleon's slide dragged the pharma sector 0.46% lower, while GSK's results on Wednesday also disappointed

• Declines in pharma and banks limited the overall rise. Banks were dragged down by a 5% fall in Lloyds Banking Group after it reported muted third-quarter results

• Finance minister John Healey's less-than-feared tax hikes in his budget on banks and gambling firms had sparked a rally in their stocks on Wednesday

• British defence firms BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce gained 2.2% and 1.4% respectively, extending gains a day after after Healey said "reprioritisation" would fill a £4.7 billion ($6.3 billion) gap in Britain's Defence Investment Plan

• The US Federal Reserve held interest rates steady on Wednesday, bringing Thursday's personal consumption expenditure figures under scrutiny

• WPP gained 5.4% after the ad group said its turnaround plan was on track after reporting a smaller decline in third-quarter like-for-like revenue

(Reporting by Darshan Kumar and Purvi Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Sahal Muhammed)