FTSE 100 live: London creeps into the green, Currys soars as takeover battle looks likely
On the FTSE 100, Astrazeneca rose to the top of the index after its Tagrisso drug received positive clinical trial results.
London’s FTSE 100 clambered into the green on Monday morning, boosted by a strong performance from pharmaceutical giant Astrazeneca.
The FTSE 100 climbed 0.18 per cent to trade at 7,725.52 while the FTSE 250 index, which is more aligned with the health of the domestic economy, dipped 0.17 per cent to trade at 19,158.39.
There was little major corporate or economic news to direct markets on Monday morning, with US markets closed for Presidents Day.
However, the biggest news in London was the bidding war brewing over FTSE 250 Currys.
Over the weekend, Currys rejected an unsolicited £700m bid from activist investor Elliot. Currys argued that the deal “undervalued” the company but Elliot said they are still considering a possible deal for the retailer on Monday morning.
The hedge fund may face competition from Chinese retail giant JD, which said it was in “very preliminary” stages of evaluating a cash offer.
Shares in Currys soared over 36 per cent following the news.
On the FTSE 100, Astrazeneca rose to the top of the index after its Tagrisso drug received positive clinical trial results.
In a statement to the market this morning, the pharmaceutical giant said that results from Phase III trial showed a “statistically significant and highly clinically meaningful improvement” in progression-free survival.
Its shares rose 3.8 per cent.
Rolls Royce also gained 2.2 per cent as investors look forward to its results later this week.
Analysts are forecasting an underlying operating profit of between £1bn and £1.4bn after new chief Tufan Erginbilgiç raised expectations in July.
Shares in Anglo American fell 1.4 per cent after its platinum mining arm reported a huge profit crash. Anglo American said it plans to cut 3,700 jobs across its mining operations, with a particularly large hit expected to come in South Africa.
“It is apparent that further measures to create critical resilience and greater competitiveness are needed to sustain the business,” chief executive officer Craig Miller said in a statement Monday.
