FTSE 100 gains as ​miners rise, Airtel Africa hits record

The commodity-heavy FTSE 100 index ended 0.36% higher, while the midcap FTSE 250 index slid 0.18%

The UK’s blue-chip FTSE 100 gained on Monday as ​mining shares jumped and Airtel Africa hit a record, helping the index avoid escalating risk aversion sentiment across world markets.

The commodity-heavy FTSE 100 index ended 0.36% higher, while the midcap FTSE 250 index slid 0.18%.

Airtel Africa jumped 14.5% to a record and was the biggest gainer on ​the FTSE 100.

The board of the company’s parent, Bharti Airtel, is scheduled to meet ​later this week to weigh options, including a possible consolidation or acquisition of ⁠stakes in its subsidiaries, including Airtel Africa.

Mining stocks Anglo American and Rio Tinto were ​also among the gainers, adding 3.9% and 3.3%, respectively.

Investors were contending with the stalemate in ​the Middle East, where hopes of an imminent reopening of the Strait of Hormuz were dashed after the U.S. president rejected Iran’s response to its peace proposal.

Brent crude futures advanced 2.8%, keeping investors concerned ​about inflation.

Data last month showed that British inflation had risen to 3.3% in March ​from 3.0% in February.

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey has also warned that policymakers would face a “difficult ‌judgement call” ⁠in the coming months on whether to raise rates.

Meanwhile, investors were also assessing the political uncertainty in the UK.

Prime Minister Starmer made an impassioned plea to his Labour Party to stick with him and avoid a leadership contest that he said would only bring chaos.

Labour ​lawmakers had turned on ​him after his ⁠party suffered the worst local election results for a governing party in more than three decades.

It is worth noting that fiscal pressures are high, ​no matter who the Labour leader is, BofA Securities strategists wrote, ​adding that ⁠the government could face pressure to support households through the oil price shocks.