FTSE gains as commodities outweigh weak banks

* FTSE 100 rises 0.4 pct

* Unilever surges on new CEO

* Banks fall ahead of BoE decision

By Dominic Lau

LONDON, Sept 4 (Reuters) - The UK's top share index drifted higher in late morning trade on Thursday ahead of the Bank of England's interest rate verdict, as gains in commodity stocks and food producer Unilever (ULVR.L: Quote, Profile, Research) offset weakness in banks.

By 1022 GMT, the FTSE 100 .FTSE was up 22 points, or 0.4 percent at 5,521.7, reversing some of the previous session's 1.2 percent fall.

Energy stocks were in demand after recent battering and after crude prices CLc1 rose by a dollar to above $110 a barrel.

BP (BP.L: Quote, Profile, Research) advanced 3.5 percent, also aided by a deal with the Russian oligarch co-owners of TNK-BP venture, ending months of increasingly hostile dispute. [ID:nL482834]