UK's FTSE 100 rises as miners jump, Airtel Africa hits record

May 11 (Reuters) - The UK's blue-chip FTSE 100 rose on Monday as mining shares jumped and Airtel Africa AAF.L hit a record, helping the index defy escalating risk-off sentiment across global markets.

The commodity-heavy FTSE 100 index .FTSE closed 0.36% higher, while the midcap FTSE 250 .FTMC index slipped 0.18%.

• Airtel Africa climbed 14.5% to a record and was the biggest gainer on the FTSE 100.

• The board of the company's parent, Bharti Airtel BRTI.NS, is scheduled to meet later this week to weigh options, including a possible consolidation or acquisition of stakes in its subsidiaries, including Airtel Africa.

• Mining stocks Anglo American AAL.L and Rio Tinto RIO.L were also among the gainers, rising 3.9% and 3.3%, respectively.

• Investors were contending with the stalemate in the Middle East, where hopes of an imminent reopening of the Strait of Hormuz were dashed after U.S. President Donald Trump rejected Iran's response to a U.S. peace proposal.

• Brent crude futures LCOc1 rose 2.8%, keeping investors concerned about inflation.

• Data last month showed that British inflation ​had risen to 3.3% in March from 3.0% in February.

• Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey has also warned that policymakers would face a "difficult judgement call" in the coming months on whether to raise rates.

• Meanwhile, investors were also assessing the political uncertainty in the UK.

• Prime Minister Keir Starmer made an impassioned plea ​to his Labour Party to stick with him and avoid a leadership contest that he said would only bring chaos.

• Labour lawmakers had ​turned on him after his party suffered the worst local election results for a governing party in more than three decades.

• "It is worth noting that fiscal pressures are high, no matter who the Labour leader is," BofA Securities strategists wrote, adding that the government could face pressure to support households through the oil price shocks.

• Metal miners .FTNMX551030 rose 3.6%, while the personal goods sector .FTNMX402040 fell 3%.

• Compass Group CPG.L rose 2.4% after it raised its 2026 profit outlook, betting on demand for workplace dining and new contract wins.

• Separately, an industry survey showed that Britain's jobs market had lost momentum in April due to cost pressures stemming from the Middle East conflict.