October 2023 worst month for FTSE 250 in a year
BP39;s Q3 profits drop sharply, shares fall
Vodafone rises on sale of Spanish arm for 5.30 bln
UK shop price inflation lowest since Aug 2022
FTSE 100 up 0.3, FTSE 250 adds 0.9

Oct 31 Reuters UK39;s FTSE 100 climbed higher on Tuesday, even as it eyed a monthly decline, as Rolls Royce39;s rating upgrade boosted aerospace and defence stocks, but BP39;s weak earnings capped gains on the index.

The commodityfocused FTSE 100 was up 0.3 as of 0908 a.m. GMT. However, the index is set to mark its worst monthly performance since June, falling over 3.4 in October.

BP shares plunged 5.3 to the bottom of the FTSE 100 after the oil company missed thirdquarter earnings estimates, hurt by a large drop in energy prices from a year earlier.

Investors have already put BP in another box and the fact that it is still delivering on its share buyback would have cushioned the blow somewhat, said Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell.

The broader oil and gas index fell 2.4 on the news.

The aerospace and defence index gained 0.9, led by a 4.1 rise in Rolls Royce to the top of FTSE 100 after Barclays raised the stock to overweight from equalweight.

The midcap FTSE 250 added 0.9, on track for a threeday winning run. However, October 2023 was the worst month for the index in over a year, dropping over 6.

As part of costsaving measures, British online trading platform IG Group said it would lay off 10 of its workforce, with…