UK’s FTSE 100 rose on Tuesday as Unilever surged after naming activist investor Nelson Peltz as a board member, helping buck the gloom in wider European markets on inflation worries.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 gained 0.2% by 0707 GMT, while the domestically focussed midcap index dropped 0.2%.

Unilever shares jumped 6.4% to touch a two-week high after naming Peltz, who now holds a roughly 1.5% stake in the consumer goods giant, as a board member. The pan-European STOXX 600 index dipped 0.3% ahead of euro zone inflation data.

FTSE 100 rises as banks gain; windfall tax threatens utilities

The reading is expected to hit another fresh high in May, ramping up pressure on the European Central Bank to raise interest rates.

Oil majors such as Shell and BP rose more than 1% each, tracking firmer crude prices after the EU agreed to slash oil imports from Russia, fuelling worries of a tighter market.

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