Marks & Spencer Share News (MKS)

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* Darktrace soars on forecast lift
* Robert Walters up after upbeat forecast
* Entain, Flutter gain on bullish Citi comments
* FTSE 100 up 0.6%, FTSE 250 adds 0.1%

(Updates to close)
By Shashank Nayar
Jan 11 (Reuters) - London's blue-chip index rose on Tuesday,
as global equities paused after a recent sell-off on concerns
about tighter monetary policies, while midcap stocks bounced off
near three-week lows.
The internationally focussed FTSE 100 ended 0.6%
higher, still lagging its European peers such as Germany's DAX
and France's CAC 40 that have been hit hard
recently due to a bigger exposure to technology firms.
Darktrace surged 6.9% and was among the top gainers
on the mid-index after raising its full-year outlook for revenue
and earnings margin following strong customer growth and
retention in the first half of the year.
"UK's market is less exposed to tech stocks and with the
sector inherently being more volatile given their nature, taking
that away from the FTSE 100 gives it a more stable personality
right now," said Stuart Cole, head macro economist at Equiti
Capital.
"We have the Bank of England and its willingness to further
tighten policies following its December hike ... there is a
sense that monetary normalisation is on the cards."
Investors have increased bets of an interest rate hike as
early as next month after the Bank of England surprised with a
rate hike in December. Rate-sensitive banks have
outperformed with a near 10% gain so far in 2022.
Gaming companies Entain and Flutter rose
more than 1% after Citigroup published bullish views on the
sector amid prospects for U.S. regulation of online sports
betting.
Robert Walters rose 4.0% after the recruitment firm
forecast annual profit to exceed current expectations and posted
higher net fees as it benefited from businesses ramping up
hiring.
The FTSE 250 mid-cap index climbed 0.1% after
sinking to its lowest since Dec. 22 in the previous session.
Marks & Spencer rose 1.3% after data from market
researcher NielsenIQ showed it was Britain's fastest growing
food retailer in the Christmas quarter.

(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar, Shashank Nayar and Amal S in
Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Lisa Shumaker)