FTSE gains on Lloyds bid speculation

Lloyds gained 5% to 535p amid speculation it may receive a bit from a US bank or from Spanish bank Banco Bilbao. It was the biggest one-day increase for Lloyds TSB shares since 2 June 2003. Barclays rose 2.25% to 614.50p while Standard Chartered gained 2.01% to 1,423p. Miners were also strong with Xstrata gaining 3.17% to 1,627p, Rio Tinto up 1.74% at 2,917p and BHP Billiton rising 1.11% to 1,050p. Gas supplier Centrica got a lift from Citigroup upping its stance on the utility to "buy". It rose 1.22% to 270p. But Cable & Wireless's gloomy trading statement yesterday and a host of d...