Investors are still coming to terms with higher-for-longer rates and the yield on 10-year Gilts jumped by 13 bps. The FTSE 100 added 0.1%.

The blue-chip index was up 0.5% at 9am after data showed that Britain's gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter grew 0.2% from the quarter before. It also confirmed that Q2 GDP was 1.8% higher than the last quarter of 2019, just before the pandemic started. In a first estimate on August 11, the Office for National Statistics mistakenly estimated GDP for the second quarter of 2023 to be down 0.2% on the final quarter of 2019.

In other good news, French inflation also came in lower-than-expected in September at 5.6%, despite higher energy prices.

Among stocks, water supplier Severn Trent gained 2.7% after it announced that it will raise 1 billion pounds in new equity.

Things to read today:

Top financial regulator seeks global clampdown on hedge fund borrowing (Financial Times)

Another Worrisome Inflation Indicator: Surging Mining Costs (WSJ)