By Polya Lesova, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The U.K.'s benchmark stock index
gained on Wednesday, led higher by the mining sector as investors
awaited the U.S. Federal Reserve's statement on monetary
policy.
The FTSE 100 index rose 0.5% to 6,461.30 in intraday trading.
Most European markets were closed for the May Day holiday.
The Stoxx 600 index , a pan-European stock-market gauge, gained
0.1% to 297.02.
Mining shares led the FTSE 100 higher, even as China's official
gauge of manufacturing activity fell to 50.6 in April, according to
the National Bureau of Statistics. The manufacturing purchasing
managers' index remained above the 50 mark that separates growth
from contraction.
"The U.K. mining sector is in demand despite the Chinese
manufacturing sector showing a marginal weakness in April," said
Brenda Kelly, senior market strategist at IG, in emailed
comments.
"With the index remaining above the pivotal 50 mark which
separates expansion from contraction, the FTSE has shrugged off the
unexpected slowdown," she said. "A strong quarter for Chilean
mining group, Antofagasta, has helped underpin demand."
Shares of Antofagasta PLC rose 1.5% as the copper producer
reported first-quarter copper output in line with expectations and
reaffirmed its full-year targets.
Among other U.K.-listed miners, Randgold Resources Ltd. rallied
3.2% and Fresnillo PLC climbed 1.4%. Commodities trader Glencore
International PLC rose 0.9%.
Banking shares also gained, with Standard Chartered PLC up 2%
and Barclays PLC (BCS) up 1.5%.
The U.S. Federal Reserve's open market committee is due to make
a monetary-policy announcement Wednesday. It's expected to keep its
bond-buying program unchanged at $85 billion a month.
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