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* FTSE 100 up 1.2%, FTSE 250 adds 1.0%
May 15 (Reuters) - London's FTSE 100 rose on Friday after
two straight days of losses as a jump in China's factory output
for the first time in 2020 powered miners and oil and gas
producers, while investors remained cautious about a looming
coronavirus-fuelled recession.
The commodity-heavy FTSE 100 was up 1.2%, with BP
Plc and Royal Dutch Shell Plc providing the
biggest boost. Miners including Rio Tinto, Glencore
and BHP Group jumped between 2.0% and 3.4%.
The mid-cap FTSE 250 rose 1% with data showing China's
industrial production climbed a faster-than-expected 3.9% in
April as the country returned to work after months of
coronavirus-induced lockdowns.
Still, both benchmark indices are on track for their first
weekly slump in three weeks as millions of job losses globally
and growing U.S.-China tensions crush consumer demand. U.S.
President Donald Trump said on Thursday he had no interest in
speaking to his Chinese counterpart right now.
Battered cruise operator Carnival Corp surged 7% to
the top of the FTSE 100 after saying it was cutting 820
positions out of a workforce of roughly 3,000 employees in
Florida as the future of the industry remains uncertain amid
no-sail orders due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
(Reporting by Sagarika Jaisinghani in Bengaluru; Editing by
Bernard Orr)
