South African minister criticises £31.1bn takeover bid for FTSE mining giant

That’s all from us today! See you again first thing tomorrow. 

WPP has posted a decline in revenue over the first quarter as the advertising giant was hit by lower spending by tech companies and the loss of major client Pfizer.

The London-listed company posted revenues of £2.7bn in the first three months of the year, a decline of 1.6pc on a like-for-like basis and its weakest quarter since the end of 2020.

WPP pointed to a “challenging” period for its largest market of North America as tech giants continue to trim their advertising budgets amid a wider economic downturn.

Bosses also blamed delays to projects as clients showed greater caution and the loss of pharmaceutical giant Pfizer from its creative agencies.

WPP was also hit by economic troubles in China, where revenues tumbled more than 15pc because of a slowdown in the automotive and luxury industries. The UK was a relative bright spot, posting growth of 0.3pc.

Shares fell as much as 3pc following the trading update.

GSK has accused Pfizer in a US lawsuit of infringing patents in its Covid-19 vaccine.

The FTSE 100 drugmaker has claimed that Pfizer and BioNTech infringed its patented mRNA technology, which it said it had been developing a decade before the outbreak of the pandemic, according to court filings.

Lucy Burton has the story:

GSK has argued that the invention has solved the problem of transporting fragile molecules of genetic code into human cells. The code then teaches cells to make antibodies.

A GSK spokesman said the company “believes that these patents provided the foundational technology used in Pfizer and BioNTech’s Covid-19 mRNA vaccines. We are willing to license these patents on commercially reasonable terms and to ensure continued patient access”.

In court documents it argued that it was “entitled to an award of monetary damages, including a reasonable royalty”.  

The Pfizer/BioNTech shot was approved by UK regulators in 2020, becoming the first ever vaccine made using revolutionary mRNA technology to get the official go ahead.

Experts have argued that the “plug and play” element of mRNA technology means that vaccines are relatively quick and straightforward to manufacture, paving the way for new inoculations against emerging infectious diseases.

The court filing bought by GSK on Thursday marks the latest legal tussle involving vaccine technology and the latest spat between GSK and Pfizer, with the companies currently locked in a patent dispute over a respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine.

It also mirrors a case brought by Moderna against Pfizer and BioNTech in 2022, when it was seeking compensation for the continued use of its jab which it said breached patent laws.

A BioNTech spokesman said the business is “aware that GSK has filed an action for infringement with respect to five patents” but will not comment on its legal strategy.

Pfizer did not respond to requests for comment but told Reuters that it is “confident in our IP position” around the Covid vaccine and intends to “vigorously defend” itself against GSK’s claims.

The FTSE 100 closed at another record high after being uplifted by a series of strong earnings reports and renewed takeover activity.

The blue-chip index climbed 38.48 points or 0.48pc to end the day at 8,078.86.

The performance was driven by BHP’s £31bn takeover bid for Anglo American, sending shares in the mining firm higher.

The FTSE 100 was also boosted Barclays, AstraZeneca and Unilever, which all saw their share prices increase in response to trading updates.

Airbus revealed plans to lift production of its biggest airliner, tapping into the rebound in demand for long-haul travel as rival Boeing remains gripped by crisis.

My colleague Christopher Jasper reports:

The European manufacturer aims to make 12 of the A350 jets a month in 2028, surpassing a pre-Covid level of 10 that it’s planning to return to in 2026.

Inter-continental flights are on the up as family visits and business trips continue to bounce back after the sector was hardest hit during the coronavirus outbreak, and luxury holidays come back into vogue.

Airbus said it remains on course to churn out 74 of its best-selling A320 single-aisle planes by 2026, leaving Boeing’s rival 737 Max trailing as the US firm grapples with the latest safety crisis, prompted by the blowout of a door panel on an Alaska Airlines plane in January.

An extra-long-range addition to the A320 family should enter service in the third quarter, consolidating the European firm’s dominance in the lucrative short-haul market.

Airbus posted a 9pc revenue increase in the first quarter as it delivered 142 airliners, 15 more than a year earlier, though adjusted profit slipped, partly due to record participation in an employee share offer.

Chief executive Guillaume Faury said that Airbus’s ramp up plans are continuing, albeit against a background of  “an operating environment that shows no sign of improvement,” with geopolitical and supply-chain tensions.

Boeing handed over only 83 planes in the first quarter, down from 130 the year before, as it slowed customer deliveries in order to improve safety checks and iron out production faults following the Alaska Airlines incident, it announced this week.

Losses at Boeing’s airliner division almost doubled and the operating cash outflow jumped 10-fold to £3.4bn.

Airbus aims to deliver 800 airlines this year and is targeting a profit as high as €7bn.

Big Four accountancy firm PwC has elected its new leader.

The professional services firm elected Marco Amitrano as its new senior partner its UK and Middle East operations. 

He replaces Kevin Ellis, who will step down after eight years at the helm.

Mr Amitrano, currently the firm’s UK managing partner and head of clients and markets, will take the over from July 1. 

He beat Laura Hinton, head of tax, and Hemione Hudson, head of audit, who were both the first ever women in PwC’s history to be nominated for the top job. 

The pound reduced its gains as money markets indicated that the US Federal Reserve could keep interest rates higher for longer.

Sterling has risen 0.2pc on the day but has fallen back below $1.25 after an earlier rise of 0.6pc. The pound was up 0.1pc against the euro, which is worth less than 86p.

It comes as traders delayed their expectations for the first interest rate cut in the US, which is now priced in by December rather than November.

Elsewhere in markets, Brent crude oil has fallen 0.5pc below $88 a barrel amid declining tensions in the Middle East.

However, European gas prices have risen as much as 3.1pc after a drop in temperatures coincided with a reduction in supplies from Norway.

I am heading off now but the live updates will keep coming into the evening courtesy of Adam Mawardi.

Shares of Meta Platforms have fallen as much as 13pc, sparking a selloff in big technology stocks after the social media firm signaled its costly bet on AI could take years to pay off.

The drop was set to erase nearly $170bn (£136.2bn) from the company’s market value and triggered a fall of 3pc to 4.2pc in shares of AI-focused Microsoft and Alphabet and advertising-reliant Snap.

Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg, who floored Wall Street last year with his cost-cutting drive, said on a post-earnings call that costs would grow “meaningfully” over the coming years before the company makes “much revenue” from some of its AI products.

That stoked investor fears that Mr Zuckerberg was plunging Meta into another costly endeavour at a time when its augmented and virtual reality business was losing billions of dollars each quarter.

Baird Equity Research analysts said: “Investors were caught off guard by higher capital expenditure, exacerbated by slightly softer second-quarter revenue guide. As such, shares are entering the ‘penalty box.’” 

Unions say their alternative plan to avoid thousands of job losses at Tata has been rejected by the steel company.

Unions met the company in London today with another plea not to press ahead with its proposals for its plant in Port Talbot, South Wales.

Unite said it would press ahead with industrial action Tata’s decision to shut both blast furnaces and shed 2,800 jobs, with strike dates to be announced soon.

Tata Steel has insisted its £1.3bn plan for a state-of-the-art electric arc furnace in Port Talbot would be the largest investment in the steel industry for decades and would secure the future of UK steelmaking.

A spokesman said: “It would protect the majority of jobs, reduce the UK’s carbon emissions by five million tonnes a year and could kickstart a green industrial revolution in South Wales.”

The Community union general secretary Roy Rickhuss said after the meeting: 

It’s incredibly disappointing that Tata have chosen to reject the multi-union plan, which is an ambitious and viable alternative to their destructive bad deal for steel.

We do not accept the company’s assertion our plan was too expensive – in fact, it would have returned the company to profits, and the additional capital expenditure needed to make it a reality could have been funded by an additional £450m from the government – a drop in the water compared to what other European countries are investing in their domestic steel industries.

Tata have made their decision, and our members will decide on our collective response.

As more voices oppose the potential takeover of Anglo American by BHP, Quilter Cheviot analyst Jamie Maddock said:

Following this morning’s blockbuster news that BHP has initiated informal discussions with Anglo American for a potential all-share offer at £25 per share, the market is clearly expecting this attempt to be rebuffed. 

The fact that the shares are trading just above what BHP is offering suggests one of two things – either BHP is going to up its offer or sweeten the deal in some way, or a second offer comes forward from another diversified miner like Glencore.

The deal premium feels relatively low, particularly in the context of recent M&A offers and the heightened complexity hence something above £30 per share could be likely to get it done.

This is a complex and potentially political deal, as well as being another blow to the London market. Given the unusual complexity and sensitivity it wouldn’t be a complete surprise to see the deal fall away. 

However, in-light of industry’s interest to acquire what is an under-valued asset, the pressure on management to be more active to close the obvious valuation discount will only increase. Even today, following the share price recovery it still trades at an unusually wide discount to its fair value.

US stock markets plunged amid fears of stagflation in the American economy.

Shares on Wall Street plummeted as official figures showed US GDP grew less than expected in the first three months of the year.

The growth of 1.6pc was behind forecasts for 2.5pc and came as separate data indicated that inflation picked up at a faster pace than predicted.

As a result, traders pushed back their expectations for the first interest rate cut by the US Federal Reserve, which is now priced in to happen by December rather than November.

Ian Lyngen at BMO Capital Markets warned that “stagflation chatter will surely pick up in the wake of these figures”.

US stock markets had already been expected to begin the day lower after Meta revealed plans to increase spending on artificial intelligence (AI) technology, spooking investors seeking returns.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged by 1.3pc after the opening bell to 37,977.20 while the S&P 500 fell 1.4pc to 5,000.05.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was the worst effected, falling by 2.2pc to 15,360.15, as more than $190bn (£152bn) was wiped off the value of Meta.

The FTSE 100 has been unaffected by the tech sell-off due to its heavy focus towards the financial sector and commodities, and remains 0.1pc higher despite the US economic data.

Traders have pushed back their expectations for the first interest rate cut in the US after a closely-watched measure of inflation came in higher than expected.

Money markets indicate that the first rate reduction will take place by December, having been priced in by November before the latest data released.

The core PCE prices index, which is closely watched by the Federal Reserve, showed inflation rose to 3.7pc during the first quarter, ahead of analyst expectations of 3.4pc.

It comes after separate figures showed the US economy grew less than expected in the first three months of the year at 1.6pc.

Ian Lyngen at BMO Capital Markets said: “Stagflation chatter will surely pick up in the wake of these figures, but we’re less concerned with such an outcome as long as the labour market remains so strong.”

Charles Schwab UK managing director Richard Flynn said: “Looking ahead, we might expect to see these figures temper the bullish narrative that pushed the market to record highs in the first few months of this year.”

The US economy grew less than anticipated in the first three months of 2024, according to government data, as consumer spending and exports decelerated.

The world’s biggest economy grew 1.6pc in the first quarter, the Commerce Department said, which was markedly lower than analysts’ expectations of 2.4pc.

This was also a cooldown from the 3.4pc increase seen in the final three months of last year.

While the latest figure still shows expansion, economic pressures could weigh on President Joe Biden as he seeks reelection in November.

The Commerce Department said the slowing “primarily reflected decelerations in consumer spending, exports, and state and local government spending”. 

There was also a “downturn in federal government spending,” the report said.

For now, consumers remain willing to spend “even if they are being more scrutinous in the face of high prices,” said EY chief economist Gregory Daco.

“Looking ahead, we see the economy gently cooling as slower labor demand, easing wage growth, stubborn inflation, and tight credit conditions constrain private sector activity,” he added.

🇺🇸 US Economy: Disappointing Spring🌸

📉Real #GDP in Q1 2024
✅+1.6% q/q
✅+3.0% y/y

🛒Consumer +2.5%
🏘️Resid +13.9%
👩‍💻Biz invest +2.9%
🔻Inventory -0.4pt
📦Trade -0.9pt (strong imports⚠️)
🏦Gov +1.2%

📉PCE #inflation
⤵️Headline 2.6% y/y (-0.2pt)
⤵️Core 2.9% (-0.3pt) pic.twitter.com/DGRqKIzOh3

— Gregory Daco (@GregDaco) April 25, 2024

Anglo American’s largest shareholder warned that the mining sector remains a “critical part of the South African economy,” as it examines the £31.1bn takeover offer from BHP.

A spokesman for Public Investment Corporation (PIC) said it will “assess any offers that are presented to shareholders and will engage directly with the investee companies,” adding:

The PIC is a long-term investor and any transaction presented will be assessed to ensure value creation for our clients. 

In addition, the mining sector remains a critical part of the South African economy, impacting a wide variety of stakeholders, therefore, new opportunities that may arise in the sector need to take these factors and long-term sustainability into account.

Shareholders in Anglo American have criticised the potential £31.1bn takeover of the mining giant by BHP.

Nick Stansbury, head of climate solutions at Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM), which is Anglo American’s 11th largest shareholder, said:

We note with concern the news that BHP have made what we regard as a highly opportunistic approach to Anglo American. 

As with many other UK listed companies, we believe the valuation of Anglo American to be depressed and regard the proposed exchange ratio as an unattractive proposition for long term investors.

The mining industry has a vital role to play in the energy transition. 

The industry is extremely concentrated today, and further consolidating it will not contribute to accelerating investment in the way we believe is needed.  

If the industry is not able to develop the significant new supply of critical minerals the world urgently requires our transition to a low carbon economy may be placed at risk.

South Africa’s minerals resources minister has criticised the attempted takeover of FTSE 100 mining giant Anglo American by Australian rival BHP, raising doubts about the £31.1bn deal.

Gwede Mantashe said he was against the tie-up, which would create the world’s largest copper miner.

He said South Africa’s previous experience with Anglo American’s Australian suitor, which claims to be the world’s largest mining company, was “not positive”.

BHP merged with South African miner Billiton in 2001 but Mr Mantashe said the transaction, which led to the formation of BHP Billiton “never did much for South Africa”.

“What we saw is that it dumped coal and then created a small company called South32, which is now marginal,” he told the Financial Times.

London Stock Exchange Group shareholders have approved a pay rise for its boss after the 300-year-old bourse campaigned to raise executive rewards to make UK markets more attractive.

The directors remuneration was passed with 88.99pc of the vote from shareholders.

David Schwimmer’s total yearly remuneration could now rise to up to £13.1m from £6.3m.

Turkey’s central bank has held its key interest rate steady as the country’s soaring inflation remains a headache for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government.

The central bank’s monetary policy committee decided to keep the policy rate at 50pc, saying it was “closely” monitoring inflation.

Economist Liam Peach of Capital Economics said he does not expect Turkey to cut rates until next year, with inflation forecast to peak at more than 70pc in May. 

The net zero crackdown on combustion engines could force the maker of Vauxhall to pull out of Britain, its boss has warned.

Our industry editor Matt Oliver has the details:

Carlos Tavares, chief executive of Stellantis, said that a law to limit petrol car sales was a “disaster for the UK” that would force manufacturers to sell vehicles at a loss.

If ministers did not make urgent changes to the rules, he suggested Stellantis could be required to slash the number of cars it sells in Britain – or even stop selling them here altogether.

A source close to the company said the more likely option was to restrict sales in Britain.

Read what he said when asked whether the maker of Vauxhall and Citroën cars could stop selling models in the UK.

US stock markets are on track to fall later as shares of most megacap growth stocks took a beating after dour quarterly results from Meta.

The Facebook owner plunged 12.9pc in premarket trading after it forecast higher expenses and lighter-than-expected revenue – raising fears the surging cost of AI is outpacing its benefits.

Social media companies Snap and Pinterest slid 4.8pc and 4.3pc, respectively.

Shares of some other growth stocks also fell, with Alphabet, Amazon and Microsoft down between 1.5pc and 2.7pc.

Alphabet, Microsoft and Intel are scheduled to report their quarterly numbers on Thursday after markets close.

Growing tensions in the Middle East and shifting expectations for interest rate cuts from the Fed have pressured stocks recently.

Investors are keenly awaiting the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index, the US central bank’s preferred inflation gauge, on Friday, which could offer clues on the timing of rate cuts.

In premarket trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 were down 0.6pc, while the Nasdaq 100 e-minis had dropped 0.9pc.

The London stock market has smashed another record peak after British mining titan Anglo American received a £31.1bn takeover bid from rival BHP.

The benchmark FTSE 100 index struck 8,102.14 points, reaching an all-time high for a third session running with Anglo American shares jumping 13pc.

News of the colossal takeover offer, aimed at creating the world’s biggest copper miner, comes amid a separate bidding war for UK-listed music rights owner Hipgnosis Songs Fund.

Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, argued that UK stocks had been trading too low. She said:

The FTSE 100 may have raced to fresh highs this week – but it’s been a long time coming, and UK-listed companies are still considered to be undervalued.

Anglo American’s share price is down around 10pc compared to a year ago, which is likely to have helped spark the offer.

The boss of Sainsbury’s has insisted customers like self-checkout tills, even as other supermarkets ditch them because of a backlash.

Our senior business reporter Daniel Woolfson has the details:

Simon Roberts insisted that Sainsbury’s shoppers “like the speedy checkout” offered by self-serve tills.

His commitment to the technology comes even as rivals scrap the devices. Northern grocer Booths replaced self-checkout machines with human cashiers at all but two of its 27 sites last year, after a survey of its customers found they were difficult to use.

In the US, Walmart and Costco have rolled back the use of self checkouts.

Take part in our poll on which type of supermarket till you prefer.

Housebuilder Persimmon expects sales to improve in the second half of the year despite a slowdown in completions.

The FTSE 100 developer predicted it will build between 10,000 and 10,500 homes over the full year despite sales falling to 1,027 in the first quarter, down from 1,136 in the first three months of last year.

Shares were up 0.8pc as it revealed an increase in forward sales to £1.75bn.

Chief executive Dean Finch said:

Our first quarter performance was in line with expectations, and we saw an improvement in sales rates alongside firm pricing. 

Trading over recent weeks has been encouraging with robust visitor numbers and enquiries, giving us confidence for the remainder of the year. 

Overall, our private forward order book is up 18pc on the prior year with the embedded private average selling price ahead of the position at the start of the year. 

We are making good progress in expanding our outlet network and we will continue to position the business for success, maintaining our focus on quality and customer service, and converting our land holdings into active developments.

French banking giant BNP Paribas posted a 30pc drop in first-quarter profit but the result was better than expected by analysts.

The lender said its profit after tax reached €3.1bn (£2.7bn) in the first three months of the year, which was down sharply from the first quarter of 2023.

BNP Paribas had booked at the time a capital gain of €3bn from its sale of US unit Bank of the West.

The bank said its revenues were stable at €12.5bn.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper hit out at Labour’s plans, questioning where the party would get the cash to fund it. He said: 

This is an unfunded spending promise because Labour do not have a plan to pay for it.

That means higher taxes on working people. But the real risk for rail passengers is Angela Rayner’s policy to bring back French-style, low threshold, zero warning strikes which will disrupt rail services. 

That’s because within their first 100 days Labour will reverse all the trade union laws we have passed, making it much easier for rail unions to strike.

It’s the same old Labour, handing more power to the unions which will mean worse services for passengers.

Deutsche Bank reported a 10pc jump in first-quarter profits amid booming business at its investment banking division.

Earnings at Germany’s biggest bank came in at €1.3bn (£1.1bn), up from €1.2bn a year earlier, while sales rose 1pc to €7.8bn, better than analysts had predicted.

Revenues at the group’s investment banking jumped 13pc, propelled by an increase in deal-making.

In contrast, sales at the retail banking division declined slightly year on year, as the effect of the European Central Bank’s interest rate increases faded.

Banks globally had profited from rising borrowing costs but most central banks are now holding rates steady, and moving towards making cuts, as inflation eases.

Deutsche Bank chief executive Christian Sewing said: “We again generated solid revenue momentum in an environment of normalising interest rates, thanks to a well-balanced business model.”

The German lender has undergone major restructuring in recent years, seeking to rely more on retail and corporate banking, after an aggressive shift in the early 2000s into investment banking saw it embroiled in multiple scandals.

Renationalising the water industry is not currently within Labour’s plans, Louise Haigh said, as she stressed her rail plan meets the party’s “ironclad” spending constraints.

Announcing her plan to renationalise the railways, the shadow transport secretary said they have become a “symbol of national decline” under the Conservatives.

Asked about whether Labour would consider bringing other services into public ownership, she told journalists: 

I think what the plans today and other plans we have set out in areas show (is) that where the settlement isn’t working we are prepared to take the tough action that is needed.

We have, as I have set out, and Rachel Reeves has repeatedly set out, ironclad fiscal rules. These reforms are within them because we won’t have to pay compensation when the railway operations contracts expire.

Water is a different settlement because we would have to nationalise the businesses and it could cost the taxpayer billions of pounds, and in the constrained fiscal environment we don’t think that is immediately the right priority.

Instead we would set out plans for regulation and for tough legislation, criminal sanctions on water directors who dump sewage in our waters, and regulation to ensure they invest in infrastructure and it is the water companies that pay the price, not consumers.

Speaking at Trainline headquarters in central London, Ms Haigh also pointed to plans for publicly owned energy company Great British Energy to “act as a challenger to the energy market as well”, describing this as a “pragmatic” offer.

Micron has been given access to more than $13bn (£10.4bn) of US government support to help build semiconductor plants in New York and Idaho, the White House has said.

The American chip manufacturer will be given  $6.1bn in direct funding and up to $7.5bn in loans under a preliminary deal.

New York senator Chuck Schumer said the investment will help Micron “to bring back leading-edge memory chip manufacturing to the United States for the first time in 20 years”. 

It is the latest in a series of awards as President Joe Biden seeks to bring semiconductor production back to the US.

Micron is expected to invest up to $125bn across both states over the next two decades “to build a leading-edge memory manufacturing ecosystem,” according to the White House.

Trainline was one of the worst performing stocks on the FTSE 250 after it emerged Labour plans to nationalise the railways.

Shares in the ticket search platform dropped as much as 7.9pc amid uncertainty over what it will mean for its offer to find cheaper tickets for passengers.

Canaccord analyst Karl Burns said in a note last month that “crucially, Labour has no plans to revive plans for a central ticketing platform, with Labour seeing the third-party retail market as key in their vision”.

AstraZeneca shares rose by the most in more than three years after it revealed higher than expected profits after a series of takeovers.

The Anglo-Swedish drugs giant rose as much as 6.5pc as earnings per share excluding some items rose 7pc to $2.06 in the first quarter – ahead of expectations of $1.89.

It comes after it bought a series of companies to ramp up the flow of drugs it aims to bring to market, including Fusion Pharmaceuticals and Amolyt Pharma.

Its drugs Tagrisso and Enhertu, which just won new clearances in the US, and the rare-disease drug Ultomiris, helped revenue rise 17pc last quarter to $12.7bn (£10.1bn).

WH Smith has seen its shift to being a “one-stop shop” for travel essentials pay off, as it plots more store openings across railway stations, airports and hospitals.

Chief executive Carl Cowling said the business was in its “strongest ever position as a global travel retailer”, with the UK travel business increasing its trading profit by nearly a fifth.

Total group revenues were 8pc higher in the six months to the end of February, compared with the previous year.

The retailer said it was benefiting from an increase in consumers travelling, particularly in large stores at London Heathrow, London Gatwick and Birmingham airports.

It is expecting to open around 110 new stores this financial year, including more than 50 in North America.

Anglo American is considering a sale of its De Beers diamond empire, it has been reported.

The London-listed company has held conversations in recent weeks with potential buyers, including luxury houses and Gulf sovereign-wealth funds, according to the Wall Street Journal. 

It comes as the FTSE 100 mining group’s shares surgedafter receiving a £31.1bn takeover approach from rival BHP.

Anglo said that under the deal being proposed by BHP, it would have to spin off two Anglo units – its platinum arm Anglo American Platinum and Kumba Iron Ore, which are both listed in South Africa.

It made no mention of iconic diamond miner De Beers, which suffered a 23pc slump in output in the first quarter.

FirstGroup shares slumped by the most in 11 months after Labour revealed plans to nationalise the railways.

Britain’s biggest train operator dropped as much as 7.7pc as shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh is expected to announce that her party will bring trains into state ownership within five years if it wins the general election.

Firstgroup runs three operators: Avanti West Coast, Great Western and South Western.

Unilever revealed rising sales across the board as it tries to tempt buyers for its ice cream business.

The consumer goods giant, which owns Ben & Jerry’s and Magnum, grew underlying sales growth by 4.4pc in the first quarter of the year. Its ice cream business grew 2.3pc.

Shares jumped 4.2pc as it said it expects sales to grow between 3pc and 5pc this year.

It emerged last week that the company could be forced to hold onto a multi-billion pound slice of its ice cream empire as the sheer size of the operations make it difficult to find a buyer.

Chief executive Hein Schumacher said:

In March, we announced the separation of ice cream and the launch of a comprehensive productivity programme. These actions will drive focus, faster growth and reduce costs. Dedicated project teams are progressing the work at pace.

Unilever’s transformation is at an early stage, but we have increasing confidence in our ability to deliver sustained volume growth and positive mix as we accelerate gross margin expansion.

The FTSE 100 hit a new record high after the surge in miner Anglo American’s shares, which was triggered by a buyout offer from BHP Group.

Shares of Anglo American surged 12.7pc to a nine-month high after BHP said it made an offer to buy the London-listed miner, valuing its share capital at £31.1bn.

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

The FTSE 350 industrial metal miners index rose 2.9pc, while the blue-chip FTSE 100 ticked up 0.7pc to a record high of 8,098.14. The mid-cap FTSE 250 was down 0.6pc.

AstraZeneca gained 5.7pc 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 4.1pc after the consumer goods company reported first-quarter sales that grew by a better than expected 4.4pc, as it won back shoppers who had traded down to cheaper products.

Barclays climbed 3.1pc despite reporting a 12pc fall in first-quarter profit.

Nicknamed the “Big Australian”, BHP claims to be the largest mining company in the world, with a market value of around $148bn (£119bn).

Its longtime rival Anglo American has a market value of about $36bn (£29bn).

BHP’s offer would first hinge on Anglo American splitting off its platinum and iron ore holdings in South Africa.

Anglo American earlier this year announced plans to cut thousands of jobs across its platinum business, which was hit hard by low metal prices.

The FTSE 100 has gained after the blockbuster offer by BHP to buy London-listed miner Anglo American in a £31.1bn deal.

The UK’s blue-chip index has risen 0.5pc to 8,076.38, while the midcap FTSE 250 has fallen 0.5pc to 19,626.62.

Anglo American shares surged by 10.2pc while BHP shares dropped 4.3pc after it confirmed its takeover offer.

BHP Group said its offer to buy Anglo American values the London-listed miner at £31.1bn.

The deal would create the world’s biggest copper miner with around 10pc of global output.

BHP, the world’s largest listed miner, will offer Anglo American shareholders £25.08 per share, including £4.86 apiece in Anglo Platinum shares and £3.40 apiece in Kumba shares.

Anglo American earlier in the day said it had received an unsolicited, non-binding and highly conditional combination proposal from BHP, which it was currently reviewing.

If the deal goes through, it would give BHP access to more copper, one of the most sought-after metals for the clean energy transition, and potash, which are its key strategic commodities, as well as more coking coal in Australia.

Sainsbury’s expects to make a profit of more than £1bn this year as more customers take out its Nectar card scheme and inflation eases.

The supermarket has seen underlying profits edge higher as higher food sales offset a weaker performance in general merchandise, but forecast strong earnings growth for the year ahead.

The supermarket giant reported a 1.6pc rise in underlying pre-tax profits to £701m for the year to March 2.

On a statutory basis, pre-tax profits slumped 15.3pc to £277m as it restructured its financial services arm and took a hit from not fully passing on interest rate rises to customers.

The group said: “We are confident of delivering strong profit growth in the year ahead.

“We expect to continue to grow grocery volumes ahead of the market, driving profit leverage.”

Barclays’ first quarter profits fell after a squeeze on mortgage lending and drought in activity at some parts of its investment bank. 

Our reporter Michael Bow has the details:

Pre-tax profits of £2.3bn between January and March were down from £2.6bn in the same period last year but ahead of City forecasts.

In the UK, income fell 7pc due to churn in deposits and mortgages as customers sought to take advantage of better interest rates on products. 

Like many lenders, the bank has been struggling with falling rates which has hampered its ability to make money on customer accounts. 

The net interest margin, which measures the difference between what Barclays earns on loans and pays out to customers, fell to 3.09pc from 3.18pc a year earlier. 

Barclays’ investment bank also reported a 7pc slide in income due to lower fees from bond, foreign exchange and commodity trading. A pickup in the stock market trading failed to cushion the fall. 

Barclays chief CS Venkatakrishnan unveiled a major restructure of the bank in February.

Today he said: “We are focused on disciplined execution of the plan.”

Thanks for joining me. Shares in British mining heavyweight Anglo American are on track to rise when trading begins after it confirmed it is examining a takeover bid from BHP.

The deal would be a potential blow for the London Stock Exchange as the FTSE 100 would lose one of its most significant mining companies and the owner of the prestigious De Beers diamond company.

5 things to start your day 

1) BHP plots possible takeover of rival mining giant Anglo American | Acquisition of De Beers owner would serve fresh blow to the Square Mile

2) Meta shares sink as AI doubts rise | About £120bn wiped from the Facebook parent’s market value

3) Let us hire foreign cabin crew, says Ryanair boss | Michael O’Leary warns expansion is at risk if he is forced to rely on British workers

4) Burberry ‘a takeover target’ after share price plunge | British luxury brand ranks among the FTSE 100’s worst performers so far this year

5) Democrats abandon Tesla as Musk turns right-wing influencer | Democrats abandon Tesla as Musk turns right-wing influencer

What happened overnight 

Meta’s share price plunged further on Wednesday night. The tech giant’s stock fell nearly 17pc in after-hours trading.

In response, Asian equities were mixed on Thursday morning as investors turned cautious.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 2.2pc, or 831.60 points, to end at 37,628.48, while the broader Topix index dropped 1.7pc, or 47.20 points, to 2,663.53.

South Korea’s Kospi dropped nearly 1pc to 2,649.96. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.5pc to 17,282.67, while the Shanghai Composite edged 0.2pc higher, to 3,049.90.

Trading was closed in Australia for a national holiday, Anzac Day.

Wall Street delivered a mixed performance on Wednesday as markets await key US inflation data while digesting mixed corporate earnings.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended down 0.1pc at 38,460.92. The broad-based S&P 500 ended flat at 5,071.63, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.1pc to 15,712.75.