Nov 5 (Reuters) - Britain's midcap FTSE 250 index hit a record high and the blue-chip FTSE 100 rose to a near three-month peak on Thursday, boosted by bank stocks ahead of the Bank of England's policy decision.
The FTSE 100 index rose 0.5% to 10,888.64 points by 1034 GMT, while the FTSE 250 climbed 0.6% to its all-time high.
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The BoE is widely expected to deliver a 25-basis-point hike on Thursday, its first rate increase in three years, as inflation pressures linked to the US-Israeli war on Iran mount
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Major central banks such as the US Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank have already raised rates, and more hikes are priced in
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Britain's inflation held at 3.5% in September, well above the BoE's target of 2%, data released last month showed
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After rallying on Wednesday, banking stocks extended gains, rising 1.3% to an over-one-week high. HSBC was the biggest boost with a 1.2% jump
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Precious metal miners rose 5%, boosted by gold prices climbing to a two-week high, after marking their biggest one-day jump in three months in the last session
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But pharma and energy sectors declined 0.3% and 0.5% respectively
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Telecom firm BT Group gained 3.5% after beating second-quarter revenue estimates; the broader sector rose 1.2%
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Defence contractor BAE Systems slid 4.1% to the bottom of the FTSE 100. The loss builds on Wednesday's 4% fall after the Democratic sweep in the US midterm elections raised concerns of a tighter military budget
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Hikma Pharmaceuticals bottomed the FTSE 250 with a 6% drop after the drugmaker lowered the higher end of its annual profit forecast range
Reporting by Darshan Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Sahal Muhammed
Source: Reuters