London's FTSE 100 slips after inflation report; Smith+Nephew drops

Aug 19 (Reuters) - London shares edged lower on Wednesday as investors assessed an in-line inflation report, while Smith+Nephew fell after announcing the departure of its finance chief.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index fell 0.1% to 10,711.52 points by 0926 GMT, while the midcap FTSE 250 slipped 0.3% to 24,483.70 points.

• British inflation rose to 2.9% in July, its highest level since March from a 15-month low of 2.6% in June, according to the Office for National Statistics, reflecting a jump in regulator Ofgem's household energy price cap.

• The data, coming a day after a softer labour market report, raised market bets that the Bank of England will keep rates on hold in September to 82%, from about 75% a day earlier.

• Smith+Nephew fell 3.38% after it said its finance chief John Rogers would step down at the end of September to take up an external position in the U.S., ending his roughly two-and-a-half-year tenure with the medical products company — a departure that comes just weeks after it cut annual revenue growth forecast.

• Oil prices climbed for a fourth straight day as investors weighed conflicting messages from Tehran and Washington on whether the Strait of Hormuz is open to ships. Oil majors Shell and BP rose 0.7% and 1.1%, respectively. [O/R]

• Global bond yields hovered near their highest for decades, as fears over swelling sovereign debt pushed borrowing costs higher and rattled stock markets worldwide on Tuesday.

• Britain's competition regulator is investigating whether Trainline, Virgin Atlantic and RED Driving School were transparent in disclosing total pricing when customers made bookings. Trainline shares fell 15.4%.

• Among mid-cap stocks, oil and gas producer Ithaca Energy gained 15.8% after raising 2026 dividend forecast.

• IG Group dropped 2.7% after brokerage UBS cut target price to 1,700 pence from 2,200 pence.

(Reporting by Anand Gopal and Medha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)