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* FTSE 100 up 0.5%, FTSE 250 adds 0.4%
July 7 (Reuters) – London’s FTSE 100 rose on Wednesday as heavyweight mining and energy stocks tracked commodity prices higher, while Royal Dutch Shell jumped on plans to boost shareholder returns.
Royal Dutch Shell jumped 2.7% to the top of the FTSE 100 as it said it would boost its planned shareholder returns beginning in the second quarter after a sharp rise in oil and gas prices helped it reduce debt.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 rose 0.5%, led by gains in energy stocks and base metal miners , up 2.2% and 1.9% respectively.
The domestically focussed mid-cap index gained 0.4%, led by a 1.3% rise in homebuilders.
British house prices in June fell in monthly terms for the first time since January as the government prepared to scale back its tax break for home-buyers, mortgage lender Halifax said. However, they rose 8.8% in annual terms.
Global recruitment firm PageGroup jumped 5.7% and was the top mid-cap gainer after it reported a 2% rise in second-quarter gross profit compared with 2019, helped by an uptick in hiring across the Asia Pacific and Americas. (Reporting by Shashank Nayar in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
