FTSE 100 Sets Fresh Record

The FTSE 100 hit a fresh record of around 8,080 on Thursday, outperforming its peers, as investors digested a batch of earnings.

Anglo American led the gains, up by 11.3% after confirming the receival of an unsolicited, non-binding and conditional all-share buyout proposal from BHP. Valued at £29 billion, the deal would require the demergers of company's platinum and iron ore businesses.

Astra Zeneca also shot up by 5.3%, having presented an 19% increase in its Q1 revenue thanks to higher Product Sales and continued improvement un Alliance Revenue from partnered medicines, strong EPS growth, and exciting pipeline delivery.

The group also said the dividend for the year would go from $0.20 per share to $3.10.

Meanwhile, Unilever grew by 4.2% on better-then-expected sales and Barclays advanced by 5% on robust figures.

In contrast, J Sainsbury dropped by 2.5%, discarding the projection for big 2024 profits.

The other decliners were Relx (-2.2%), LSE (-2.2%), and Rolls Royce (-2.6%).