Sharp rises in oil company shares drove Britain’s FTSE 100 higher today. — Reuters pic
LONDON, Aug 19 — Sharp rises in oil company shares drove Britain’s FTSE 100 higher today, after an attack on a Saudi oil facility by Yemeni separatists pushed crude prices higher, while Asia-exposed banks gained following moves by China to keep business interest rates low.
By 0710 GMT, the FTSE 100 had jumped nearly 1%, its biggest one-day rise in more than 10 days, while the midcap index was 0.6% higher.
Shell and BP both rose 1.5%, tracking a surge in crude prices following a drone attack by Yemen’s Houthi group on an oilfield in eastern Saudi Arabia on Saturday, which caused a fire at a gas plant and added to Middle East tensions.
Miners and Asia-exposed financial heavyweights, led by HSBC with a near 2% rise, also offered support after China’s central bank announced a set of reforms to help lower borrowing costs for companies and support an economy that has been bruised by the trade war with the United States. — Reuters