FTSE 100 hits record high on big mining M&A, earnings push

BRITAIN’S FTSE 100 hit a record high on Thursday (Apr 25) as miner Anglo-American surged on a buyout offer from BHP Group, while investors cheered earnings from several blue-chip firms including Unilever, AstraZeneca and Barclays.

Shares of Anglo-American surged 12.7 per cent to a nine-month high after BHP said it made an offer to buy the London-listed miner, valuing its share capital at £31.1 billion (S$52.9 billion).

The deal would create the world’s biggest copper miner with around 10 per cent of global output. BHP’s UK-listed stock fell 3.7 per cent.

The FTSE 350 industrial metal miners index rose 2.6 per cent, while the blue-chip FTSE 100 ticked up 0.7 per cent to a record high of 8,098.14. The mid-cap FTSE 250 was down 0.5 per cent.

AstraZeneca gained 5.3 per cent after the drugmaker reported quarterly revenue and profit above market estimates buoyed by resilient demand for its oncology and rare blood disorder drugs.

Unilever rose 4.1 per cent after the consumer goods company reported first-quarter sales that grew by a better than expected 4.4 per cent, as it won back shoppers who had traded down to cheaper products.

Barclays climbed 3.1 per cent despite reporting a 12 per cent fall in first-quarter profit. REUTERS