Oct. 7 (Bloomberg) -- U.K. stocks rose, led by HSBC Holdings Plc and Barclays Plc after Saudi Arabia said it will allow non- Arab banks to open branches in the country.

The benchmark FTSE 100 Index added 1.9 points, or 0.04 percent, to 4272 after declining yesterday for the first day in four. The FTSE All-Share Index added 0.06 percent, for the fifth day of gains.

Saudi Arabia, the Middle East's largest economy, will permit non-Arab banks to open branches in the kingdom for the first time since the 1970s, when the banking industry was nationalized, the state's central bank said.

Shares of HSBC, the world's No. 2 bank by market value, rose 10.5 pence, or 1.3 percent, to 852.5. Barclays, Britain's third- largest bank, climbed 9.5 pence, or 1.9 percent, to 500.25.

The following stocks made gains or losses today. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names.

Anglo American Plc (AAL LN), the world's biggest precious- metals mining company, slipped 18 pence, or 1.5 percent, to 1,160 pence after analysts at Deutsche Bank AG cut the stock to ``hold'' from ``buy'' on concern the share price already reflects its prospects for higher earnings.

AstraZeneca Plc (AZN LN), Europe's No. 2 pharmaceutical company, slipped 31 pence, or 1.2 percent, to 2,668 pence after the Wall Street Journal said the company was warned by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to stop marketing Merrem, an antibiotic, as a product that can treat conditions caused by resistant pathogens. The Journal cited a FDA letter dated Oct. 3 and posted on the agency's Web site.

BAE Systems Plc (BA/ LN), Europe's largest weapons contractor, added 3.5 pence, or 1.9 percent, to 183.5, after Colin Crook, an analyst UBS AG, upgraded the stock to ``buy 2'' from ``neutral 2.''

British Sky Broadcasting Group Plc (BSY LN), Rupert Murdoch's U.K. pay-television company, slipped 14 pence, or 2.2 percent, to 624.5 pence after saying it sold a 63 million-pound ($105 million) stake in Manchester United Plc. It didn't identify the buyer of the shares. Manchester United, the world's biggest soccer club by sales, (MNU LN) added 10 pence, or 4.3 percent, to 245 pence.

Eckoh Technologies Plc (ECK LN), a provider of speech recognition services, gained 1.5 pence, or 12 percent, to 14 pence after the company said it won a joint contract with BT Group Plc from TD Waterhouse.

Marks & Spencer Group Plc (MKS LN), the largest U.K. clothes retailer, dropped 9.5 pence, or 3 percent, to 306.25 pence after the company said revenue growth slowed in its fiscal second quarter as a heat wave kept consumers away from stores.

Sales at stores open at least a year rose 0.6 percent in the 11 weeks ended Sept. 27. It was expected to have increased 2.1 percent, according to the median forecast of four analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News.

EasyJet Plc (EZJ LN), Europe's largest low-cost carrier, added 6.25 pence, or 2.7 percent, to 235.75 pence, after the company said its September passenger count rose 19 percent as the airline added routes across Europe.

George Wimpey Plc (WMPY LN), the biggest U.K. homebuilder, fell 0.5 pence, or 0.13 percent, to 387.5 pence after the company said unit sales, margins and prices may exceed its expectations this year as the lowest borrowing rates for almost 50 years spur demand.

Granada Plc (GAA LN) gained 9.25 pence, or 9 percent, to 112.25 pence after the U.K. government approved Granada Plc's $1.9 billion purchase of Carlton Communications Plc on condition the companies agree to regulation of advertising sales for their ITV television network, which has more than half the country's TV ad market.

Analysts had said the companies might have to sell both their ad sales departments to get the regulatory approval, which would have reduced costs savings from the transaction.

Carlton (CCM LN) added 23.5 pence, or 13 percent, to 205 pence. SMG Plc (SMG LN), Scotland's largest media company, gained 13 percent to 110 pence and Ulster Television Plc (UTV LN), Northern Ireland's biggest broadcaster, added 3.3 percent to 357.5.

Matalan Plc (MTN LN), the largest U.K. discount clothing retailer, added 25 pence, or 11 percent, to 245 pence after the company said it was ``comfortable'' with analysts' consensus forecasts predicting 115 million pounds of pretax profit this year.

Reed Elsevier Plc (REL LN), slipped 0.25 pence, or 0.05 percent, to 485.25 pence as Sami Kassab, an analyst at BNP Paribas, rated the company ``underperform'' in new coverage.

Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Group Plc (RSA LN), Britain's second-biggest property and casualty insurer, added 2.25 pence, or 2.6 percent, to 88.5 after the company said it has completed a 400 million-pound bank credit line to replace a senior debt facility. The facility was oversubscribed, Royal & Sun said in a statement.

Scottish & Newcastle Plc (SCTN LN), Europe's biggest brewer, fell 9 pence, or 2.5 percent, to 347 after Chris Pitcher, an analyst at UBS AG, downgraded the stock to ``neutral 1'' from ``buy 1.''

Last Updated: October 7, 2003 12:09 EDT