(Reuters) -British stocks closed higher on Wednesday, as investors assessed mixed corporate earnings and key economic data, wrapping up another volatile month dominated by U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade policies.
Both the blue-chip FTSE 100 index and the midcap FTSE 250 gained 0.4%.
Despite recovering most losses from steep tariffs announced earlier this month, the benchmark index fell for the second straight month, ending April 1.4% lower after falling 2.6% in March. The domestically focused midcap index rose 1.8% in April.
Markets have recently stabilized somewhat on optimism about U.S. trade deals, particularly with China, but a lack of clarity on Sino-U.S. negotiations has kept the market sensitive to any developments.
Meanwhile, economic data showed U.S. GDP contracted in the first three months of 2025, however, Trump said his tariffs would eventually bring a booming economy.
Medical equipment and services led the sectoral gains on Wednesday, up 4.1%, with a boost from Smith+Nephew, up 5.8%, after the medical products maker maintained full-year sales and profit margin forecasts.
GSK was among the top gainers in the FTSE 100, up 3.6%, after the drugmaker reaffirmed its outlook for 2025 and said it is well positioned to absorb a tariff hit.
Coca-Cola HBC gained 3.9% on a first-quarter revenue beat.
Genus was the best performer on the midcap index, up 16.1%, after the U.S. FDA approved gene-edited pigs for use in the U.S. food supply chain.
Conversely, industrial metal miners led the sectoral declines, down 4.2%, after copper prices fell more than 3%. [MET/L]
Glencore was down 7.4%, after reporting a 30% drop in first-quarter copper production.
Meanwhile, British house prices fell 0.6% in April, their largest monthly decline in over 18 months.
(Reporting by Ragini Mathur and Sanchayaita Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore and Chris Reese)
