UK's FTSE 100 poised for longest monthly winning streak in over 12 years

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FTSE 100 up 0.3%, ‌FTSE 250 flat *

Trump picks Kevin Warsh as new Fed chair *

Experian shares rise as $1 billion buyback plan unveiled Jan 30 (Reuters) -

Heavyweight banking stocks led London's FTSE ⁠100 higher on Friday, putting the index on track for a seventh consecutive month of gains, while investors assessed the appointment of Kevin Warsh as chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve. The blue-chip index rose 0.3% by ​1157 GMT, poised for its longest monthly winning streak in over 12 years. It was also ‍on course for weekly gains after logging losses last week.

The domestically focused FTSE 250 was flat on Friday, but it was on track to close both the week and month in positive territory. The banking sub-index climbed 3.5% for the week ⁠and about ‌5.3% for the month. ⁠It was up 1.2% on the day with Lloyds and Investec rising 2% and 1.4%, respectively.

Credit analytics firm Experian climbed ‍3.7% to the top of the FTSE 100 after unveiling a new $1 billion share buyback program. U.S. President Donald Trump ​on Friday said he had chosen former Federal Reserve governor Kevin Warsh to head the U.S. central ⁠bank.

Precious metals miners fell 4.4%, as gold tumbled over 4% amid earlier speculation that the Fed could get a more hawkish ⁠chair. The sub-index has gained roughly 20% this month. Industrial metal miners also declined 2.5% on the day.

Geopolitical tensions resurfaced as Trump warned it was "dangerous" for Britain to deepen business ties with Beijing, even ⁠as Prime Minister Keir Starmer lauded the economic benefits of resetting UK-China relations during his Friday visit ⁠to the country. On the economic ‌front, British business confidence weakened in January as global economic optimism slid to a one-year low, even though firms grew more upbeat about their own activity ⁠and hiring plans, a Lloyds survey showed.