United Kingdom: Stocks Finish Higher.

London's FTSE 100 erased early losses to close about 0.5% up at 10,572 on Thursday, as investors assessed a slew of corporate releases and domestic data while monitoring ongoing tensions in the Middle East. Strong gains in industrials offset weakness in miners and tech stocks. Rotork soared more than 60% after agreeing to a GBP 4.1 billion takeover by Swiss engineering group ABB, lifting sentiment across the industrial engineering sector and sending shares of Weir Group, IMI, Spirax Group, Smiths Group, and DCC higher. Diploma surged over 6% after raising its margin outlook and forecasting stronger-than-expected organic revenue growth. Ocado tumbled more than 10% after underwhelming full-year results, while Experian and Trustpilot also fell sharply following trading updates. Frasers Group declined after reporting a 4% drop in annual adjusted pre-tax profit and withholding full-year guidance, citing takeover bids and a challenging consumer environment.