UK equities mixed as investors assess corporate earnings, await key data

By Sukriti Gupta

July 22 (Reuters) - London's main stock indexes were mixed on Tuesday as investors parsed a spate of corporate earnings, and awaited the release of key economic data this week.

The benchmark FTSE 100 .FTSE was flat by 0944 GMT, after registering a record closing high on Monday. The domestically oriented midcap FTSE 250 .FTMC lost 0.4%.

Industrial miners .FTNMX551020 rose 1.1%, tracking a rise in copper prices, buoyed by hopes for firmer Chinese demand. Glencore GLEN.L gained 2.2%, while Rio Tinto RIO.L rose 1.1%. MET/L

Homebuilders and household goods stocks .FTNMX402020 led sectoral losses, falling 1.6%. Vistry VTYV.L down 2.7%.

Data showed Britain borrowed more than expected in June as a jump in inflation pushed up the government's debt costs.

In company news, British food catering firm Compass Group CPG.L rose 6.1% to the top of the blue-chip index, after it agreed to buy European premium food services business Vermaat Groep for about 1.5 billion euros ($1.75 billion), including debt and also raised its annual profit forecast.

Energy firm Centrica CNA.L surged 3.9% after Britain approved the 38 billion pound ($51 billion) Sizewell C nuclear plant in eastern England. The company holds a 15% stake in the project.

Greencore GNC.L jumped 10.5%, to top the FTSE mid-cap index, after the convenience food manufacturer raised its annual profit expectations.

Kier Group KIE.L fell 5.1%, to the bottom of the mid-cap index, after the British infrastructure and construction group said that its CEO Andrew Davies would be stepping down, and named insider Stuart Togwell as his successor, effective November 1, 2025.

Meanwhile, AstraZeneca AZN.L on Monday said it plans to invest $50 billion in the U.S. to expand manufacturing and research capabilities as it reacts to White House trade policy.

On the radar this week are UK flash Purchasing Managers' Index for July and June retail sales data.

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