London stocks closed higher on Friday (March 31), supported by gains in health care and consumer goods stocks. Meanwhile, slowing US inflation data has raised hopes that the Federal Reserve (Fed) is slowing raising interest rates.
The London Stock Exchange FTSE 100 closed at 7,631.74, up 11.31 points, or +0.15%, and was up 2.5% in the first quarter, but the index was down almost 3% in March, beating its biggest March decline since 2020
The London stock market came together with the US stock market. This was fueled by a slowdown in inflation data releases. and increased spending by US consumers.
Personal goods shares rose 1.6%.
AstraZeneca stock and GlaxoSmithKline stocks were up 0.6%.
But banking shares fell 13.5% in March, weighed down by concerns about the global banking system following the collapse of two US regional banks.
