(For a live blog on European stocks, type LIVE/ in an Eikon
news window)
* FTSE 100 up 0.2%, FTSE 250 up 0.4%
* Smith+Nephew, Moneysupermarket.com among notable gainers
* Virus cases in South Korea deter more rapid gains
Feb 20 (Reuters) - London's FTSE 100 inched up on Thursday,
led by an earnings-driven 5% rise in Smith+Nephew, while sharp
gains in price comparison website Moneysupermarket.com and
electrical engineering firm Spectris helped midcaps outperform.
The blue-chip index .FTSE added 0.2%, with Smith+Nephew
SN.L hitting a more than four-month high after the medical
products maker topped annual sales expectations for 2019 and
forecast another year of revenue growth. The FTSE 250 .FTMC rose 0.4%. Moneysupermarket.com
MONY.L , which said on Wednesday that its chief executive
officer would step down, snapped a three-day losing streak and
surged 8%. Spectris SXS.L jumped 6.5% after its 2019 results.
Both British benchmark indexes advanced, even though a
coronavirus outbreak in South Korea stoked fears that the health
crisis would deepen globally.