FTSE 100 flat, FTSE 250 adds 0.1

Jan 27 Reuters UK39;s FTSE 100 was flat on Friday as jitters grew ahead of a slate of central bank decisions next week, although shares of Sainsbury39;s jumped after retail firm Bestway took a stake in the British supermarket group.

The bluechip FTSE 100 index was unchanged by 0807 GMT, while the midcap FTSE 250 index inched up 0.1, on course for a weekly gain.

Wall Street39;s main indexes closed higher on Thursday after a raft of data showed the U.S. economy fared better than expected in the fourth quarter, allaying concerns about an immediate recession but also likely emboldening the Federal Reserve to keep key interest rates higher.

Major central banks including the U.S. Fed and the Bank of England will announce monetary policy decisions next week, with traders betting on a 50basispoint rate hike from the latter.

Sainsbury39;s rose 5.2 to the top of the FTSE 100 after Bestway amassed a 3.45 stake in Britain39;s secondlargest supermarket group, but said it is not considering a takeover offer.

Superdry tumbled 9.1 after the fashion retailer cut its profit forecast for the year and forecast to broadly breakeven as its wholesale segment underperformed.

Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry JacobPhillips

Source Reuters