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Large-cap miners prospered on Monday as gold prices surged, with indices closing higher across the board. The FTSE 100 index closed up 15.40 points, 0.2%, at 9,442.87. The FTSE 250 ended 262.48 points higher, 1.2%, at 22,064.32, and the AIM All-Share rose 6.14 points, 0.8%, to 792.47. The Cboe UK 100 ended up 0.4 at 944.36, the Cboe UK 250 closed 1.4% higher at 19,086.35, while the Cboe Small Companies rose 0.3% to 17,757.64. In European equities on Monday, the CAC 40 in Paris closed up 0.2%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt ended up 0.6%. Stocks in New York were up at the time of the London close, regaining some of Friday’s falls. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.3%, the S&P 500 was 1.5% lower, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 2.0%. Over the weekend, US President Donald Trump said the US wants to help China, not hurt it, striking a more conciliatory tone days after threatening ‘massive’ additional tariffs on Friday. ‘The USA. wants to help China, not hurt it!!!,’ Trump said in Sunday’s post on Truth Social, adding that ‘respected President Xi [Jinping]...doesn’t want Depression for his country’. Jim Reid at Deutsche Bank said Friday’s developments were a reminder that the underlying tension between the two countries still exists, and he thinks these tensions will probably be a recurring theme in the years ahead as both sides compete on the global stage for dominance. ‘China currently holds considerable leverage in the rare earths market and seems keen to use it to secure a better deal - particularly in the chip sector, where the US has imposed export controls. So, this battle is shaping up as rare earths versus AI chips,’ he suggested. The US government shutdown is dragging on, meanwhile. It began at the start of the month. Since then, a nonfarm payrolls report has gone unpublished. On Friday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said US inflation data, due this Wednesday, has been pushed back to October 24. ‘No other releases will be rescheduled or produced until the resumption of regular government services. This release allows the Social Security Administration to meet statutory deadlines necessary to ensure the accurate and timely payment of benefits,’ the BLS said. The pound was quoted lower at $1.3331 at the time of the London equity market close on Monday, compared to $1.3338 on Friday. The euro stood at $1.1569, lower compared to $1.1616. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JP¥152.30, higher compared to JP¥151.87. The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.04%, narrowed from 4.07% on Friday. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury stood at 4.62%, trimmed from 4.66%. On the FTSE 100, gold miners Fresnillo and Endeavour Mining leapt 9.1% and 11% respectively, as gold’s safe haven qualities saw the price of the yellow metal hit fresh highs. Gold traded at $4,093.56 an ounce on Monday, up from $4,014.76 on Friday. Copper miners were also in demand as the price of the metal jumped 6.5%. Glencore jumped 3.3% and Antofagasta 5.0%. Elsewhere, M&G, up 3.0%, benefited from an upgrade from Berenberg to ’buy’ from ’neutral’. The broker thinks the UK life insurance sector will see an acceleration in dividend per share growth in the coming years. AstraZeneca gave back early gains, closing down 0.7%, despite confirming a ‘historic’ drug pricing agreement with the US. The agreement, which follows a similar accord announced last month with Pfizer, requires AstraZeneca to charge ‘Most Favored Nation’ pricing matching the lowest price offered in other wealthy nations to Medicaid, the US health insurance programme for low-income Americans. The company added that specific terms of the agreement remain confidential. In exchange, Trump administration officials agreed to a three-year delay on new tariffs on AstraZeneca, which had previously announced plans to invest $50 billion in the US in response to looming tariff threats. UBS analyst Matthew Weston said the deal removes uncertainty on Section 232 tariffs and provides ‘some clarity’ on MFN drug pricing in the US. The agreement is the first with the White House for a non-US drugmaker, with more expected to follow for AstraZeneca’s peers. On the FTSE 250, Big Yellow Group jumped 15% after Blackstone Europe confirmed it is a potential bidder for the company. Bagshot, Surrey-based self-storage site operator, Big Yellow, said it has held meetings with ‘a small number of parties’ that could lead to a takeover offer. Blackstone Europe, part of New York-based private equity investment manager Blackstone, said any offer for Big Yellow would be via one or more investment funds that it advises. Oxford Instruments said order intake suffered in the first half of its financial year amid tariff disruption, meaning that full-year revenue is likely to be little changed year-on-year. Chief Executive Richard Tyson said the start of the financial year coincided with the beginning of a ‘turbulent time in our markets’, and despite an ‘improving picture’ in the second quarter, ‘we are now assuming that we will not recover the [first half] revenue shortfall’. In response, shares in the provider of high technology products and services to industry and scientific research communities fell 7.6%. Brent oil traded at $63.40 a barrel on Monday, up from $63.19 late Friday. The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Endeavour Mining, up 348.00 pence at 3,436.00p, Fresnillo, up 216.00p at 2,592.00p, Antofagasta, up 134.00p at 2,827.00p, Anglo American, up 119.00p at 2,999.00p and Glencore, up 11.40p at 357.25p. The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were BAE Systems, down 31.00p at 1,951.50p, Intertek, down 74.00p at 4,812.00p, British American Tobacco, down 57.00p at 3,788.00p, Babcock International, down 18.00p at 1,211.00p and Burberry, down 17.00p at 1,182.50p. Tuesday’s global economic diary has UK unemployment and average earnings data, plus the release of the minutes from the last Reserve Bank of Australia minutes overnight. Tuesday’s UK corporate calendar has full-year results from housebuilder Bellway and a trading statement from miner Rio Tinto. Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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