Consumer staples, industrials stocks lift UK shares

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index climbed 0.6%, with consumer staples including Diageo Plc, Unilever Plc and Ocado Group being the biggest gainers on the index.

UK shares inched higher on Monday, supported by consumer staples and industrials stocks as the economic recovery gathered pace, while recruiter SThree rose after its performance returned to pre-pandemic levels in the first quarter.

British businesses are more likely to expect a rebound in activity this year than their counterparts abroad, and expectations of a pick-up in growth are stronger than at any point since 2015, a survey showed. (Bloomberg file photo. Representative image)

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index climbed 0.6%, with consumer staples including Diageo Plc, Unilever Plc and Ocado Group being the biggest gainers on the index.

The domestically focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index rose 0.4%, led by gains in industrials stocks.

British businesses are more likely to expect a rebound in activity this year than their counterparts abroad, and expectations of a pick-up in growth are stronger than at any point since 2015, a survey showed.

Food delivery company Deliveroo plans to sell around 1 billion pounds ($1.39 billion) of new shares in its upcoming initial public offering, expected to be the biggest London listing in more than seven years.

SThree rose 0.6%, after saying its first-quarter performance had returned to pre-pandemic levels and exceeded its expectations.