FTSE 100 notches fourth straight day of gains as oil slides on US-Iran deal hopes

Nov 2 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 rose for the fourth straight day on Monday as a sharp drop in oil prices lifted broader risk appetite, with investors awaiting the Bank of England's interest rate decision this week. 

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index ended up 0.3% at 10,761.33 points, while the midcap FTSE 250 climbed 1.4% to 24,795.85.

• Oil prices slumped 7.5% with Brent crude trading around $104 a barrel, as talks between Iran and Qatar raised hopes of an end to the US-Iran war [O/R]

• The energy sector fell 3.3%, with Ithaca Energy down 6%, while BP fell 4.4% and 2.9%, respectively, among the bottom performers on the FTSE 100

• Broader gains were led by the FTSE 350 travel & leisure index, up 2.7%, the construction & materials index, up 2.8%, and the consumer products & services index, up 2.5%

• Pharma stocks declined 0.7% after gaining over 5% on Friday, their biggest single-day gain in about 13 months

• The Bank of England's interest rate decision will be in focus on Thursday, with the central bank widely expected to raise rates by 25 basis points for the first time in three years

• Higher-than-expected inflation in September sealed the case for tighter monetary policy. It was underscored by data on Monday showing British manufacturers recorded their strongest output growth in more than two years in October

• The FTSE 100 marked its first monthly gain in three months in October, outperforming the US benchmark S&P 500 that lost close to 1% due to a selloff in AI stocks

• Finance minister John Healey's first budget last week presented less-severe-than-expected tax hikes on banks and gambling firms as well as funding for Britain's defence plan, sparking a rally in those stocks

• Public transport operator FirstGroup rose 7% after agreeing to sell certain assets to the West Yorkshire Combined Authority for £109 million ($145.95 million), helping support the midcap index

(Reporting by Darshan Kumar and Medha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Joyjeet Das and Shailesh Kuber)