- FTSE 100 up 0.4%; FTSE 250 up 0.2%
- Blue-chip FTSE 100 set for strongest annual gain since 2009
- Mining shares gain as metal prices stabilize
Dec 30 (Reuters) - UK shares edged higher in quiet trading on Tuesday, the penultimate session of 2025, with mining shares gaining some ground as metal prices stabilized a day after a sharp pullback.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index added 0.4% by 1040 GMT, less than 0.2% away from its all-time high in November, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 index eked out a 0.2% gain.
Shares of Fresnillo climbed 4.6%, while Glencore, Anglo American and Rio Tinto added between 0.6% and 2.8% as gold, silver and copper recovered from Monday's lows.
Precious metal miners' stocks added 3%, while industrial metal miners firmed 1.9%, leading gains among sectors.
Shares of heavyweights HSBC , Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group and Standard Chartered, up between 0.8% and 1.1%, also supported FTSE 100's advance on Tuesday.
Trading volumes at the London stock market have stayed below their 20‑day moving average since last week, LSEG data showed, as many investors were away during the holiday‑shortened Christmas and New Year period.
Domestic markets will close early on Wednesday for New Year's Eve and remain closed across most of the world on Thursday, January 1.
The FTSE index has climbed 21% in 2025, on track for its fifth consecutive year in the green and its strongest annual showing in 16 years helped by accommodative monetary policy, as well as gains in heavyweight financial and mining stocks.
Earlier in December, the Bank of England cut interest rates by 25 basis points in a narrow vote for the fourth time this year but it signalled that the already gradual pace of lowering borrowing costs might slow further
Reporting by Medha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber
Source: Reuters