The FTSE 100 Index rallied to a new four a half year high today, gaining 0.51% to close at 5,740, led by speculation of a possible takeover of Standard Chartered.
Standard Chartered gained 5.74% to 1,401p on speculation aggressive US banking giants such as JP Morgan, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, Wachovia and Bank of America were weighing up a takeover bid. Elsewhere, further speculation nudged Anglo American 0.20% higher to 1,995p after the £30bn mining giant was reported to have assembled a team of advisers to break itself up, starting with the demerger of its packaging business Mondi. Other miners pushed ahead as gold price surged again: Xstrata was up 1.94% to 1,470p and Kazakhmys climbed 1.45% to 804p. Shares in oil explorer Burren Energy als...
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