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(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 100 was 1.6% higher at 10,805.49 in afternoon trade on Wednesday.
Lion Finance - formerly Bank of Georgia Group - was the standout gainer on the index after the lender reported a 21% jump in third-quarter profits and announced an increase in its dividend alongside a further share buyback.
It reported third-quarter profits of GEL 661.9m, up from GEL 547.2m a year earlier, supported by strong lending growth across its Georgian and Armenian operations.
Precious metals miner Fresnillo shone as gold prices breached $4,000 an ounce as the dollar and US Treasury yields fell on the Democrat sweep in the US midterm elections.
Marks & Spencer rose after half-year results. The retailer posted a surge in half-year profits as it rebounded from 2025's devastating cyber attack. Sales in the 26 weeks to 26 September jumped 16.2% to £9.26bn, while adjusted pre-tax profits soared to £403.2m from £184.1m a year previously.
However, on a two-year basis, profits remained below 2024/25's interim income of £413.1m, as strong demand for M&S's food offering failed to offset weaker conditions in clothing.
Banks NatWest, HSBC, Barclays, Standard Chartered and Lloyds also rallied.
On the downside, Weir slid even as it reiterated full-year guidance and reported an 8% increase in third-quarter orders, with investors choosing to focus on execution risks rather than underlying demand.
Defence firm BAE Systems was under the cosh amid expectations the outcome of the US midterms would lead to lower spending on defence.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Lion Finance Group (BGEO) 12,780.00p 6.28%
Fresnillo (FRES) 2,427.00p 6.17%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 439.00p 6.01%
NATWEST GROUP (NWG) 608.40p 4.90%
HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 1,317.80p 4.69%
Barclays (BARC) 439.20p 4.65%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 2,149.00p 4.63%
St James's Place (STJ) 1,130.50p 4.58%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 97.78p 4.40%
Associated British Foods (ABF) 1,984.00p 4.37%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Weir (WEIR) 2,434.00p -7.23%
Ithaca Energy (ITH) 265.00p -5.44%
Computacenter (CCC) 4,892.00p -3.11%
BAE Systems (BA.) 2,034.00p -1.88%
Halma (HLMA) 3,418.00p -1.61%
Diploma (DPLM) 7,105.00p -1.52%
Spirax Group (SPX) 7,380.00p -1.07%
IMI (IMI) 2,866.00p -0.76%
BP (BP.) 582.70p -0.71%
Smiths Group (SMIN) 2,693.00p -0.70%
