UK stocks set for weekly gains
Tech trio set to weigh on Wall St
BM, MS rise after Deutsche Bank upgrade
FTSE 100 up 0.2, FTSE 250 off 0.6

Feb 3 Reuters UK39;s bluechip index edged higher on Friday, boosted by gains in oil major Shell and retailer BM European, while midcaps slid as U.S. tech majors39; downbeat results offset optimism over major central banks nearing the end of their rate hike cycle.

The commodityheavy FTSE 100 rose 0.2 after opening lower, with Shell jumping 1.8, a day after it delivered a record 40 billion profit in 2022.

The FTSE 250 index, however, slid 0.6 as the global mood soured after Wall Street39;s tech titans Apple Inc, Amazon.com Inc and Alphabet Inc reported dour results.

Still, both the UK equity indexes were heading for weekly gains after dovish comments from the Federal Reserve and the Bank of England this week raised hopes that the central banks could pause the ratehike spree after a series of increases to bring inflation under control.

Bank of England Chief Economist Huw Pill said it was important not to raise borrowing costs too high, a day after the bank raised interest rates to 4 and forecast a shallow recession.

The postmeeting statement suggests that the BoE is preparing to ease off the brake, analysts BCA Research told clients. The MPC expects looser labor market conditions and the lagged impact of rate hikes to cool the economy going forward.

Discount retailer BM gained 2.6 and Marks Spencer rose 0.7 after Deutsche…