The FTSE 100 closed up 0.5% at 7976 points on Thursday. "Today's action on the FTSE 100 has been driven by a combination of mining stocks and yield plays. While the commodity rally might be taking a breather today, mining stocks like Fresnillo and Anglo American have been firm favorites of late, and there is no sign of that move slowing down," Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading platform IG, said. Mondi was the day's highest riser, up 6.5%, followed by Entain and Antofagasta, up 5.0% and 4.7%, respectively. Ocado Group, St. James's Place, and Admiral Group were the session's biggest fallers, down 5.0%, 2.4% and 2.1%, respectively.


COMPANIES NEWS:

DS Smith Gets U.K. Takeover Panel Extension to Mondi Bid Deadline

DS Smith said talks with peer Mondi are continuing over a possible merger, so the U.K. Takeover Panel has extended the bid deadline.

---

Entain Interim CEO Stella David to Replace Chair Barry Gibson

Entain's Chairman Barry Gibson will retire by the end of September, with interim Chief Executive Stella David to take over the role.

---

Drax Signs New Loan Facility of GBP150 Mln to Refinance Debt

Drax Group said it has completed a new term-loan facility of 150 million pounds ($189.8 million) to refinance debt maturing in 2025.

---

Ocado Chairman Rick Haythornthwaite to Step Down to Focus on NatWest Role

Ocado Group said its chairman, Rick Haythornthwaite, will step down due to his increasing commitments as chairman of NatWest Group.

---

Vodafone UK Joint Venture With Three Faces Further Regulator Scrutiny

Vodafone UK's planned joint venture with Three UK will come under greater scrutiny after the country's competition regulator submitted the deal for a more in-depth antitrust review.


MARKET TALK:

Future PLC Shares Seen as Undervalued

0910 GMT - Future PLC's shares continue to look cheap despite the company's return to organic growth in the second quarter, Peel Hunt analysts Jessica Pok and Melanie Yang say. The platform for specialist media's growth acceleration strategy launched by the new CEO is already showing some progress in delivering strong performance and it is on track to meet market expectations for 2024, the analysts write in a research note. However, audience numbers are still down year-on-year while continued stabilization of audience trends is seen as an encouraging sign, and should boost investor confidence, the U.K. brokerage adds. Shares are up 14.8% at 688.50 pence. (najat.kantouar@wsj.com)

---

Gilt Yields Fall Ahead of U.K. PMI, Inflation Expectation Data

0822 GMT - Gilt yields fall ahead of U.K. final services PMI data and firms' inflation expectations from the Bank of England Decision Maker Panel survey results. "The [BOE] survey [in February] suggested that firms' expectations for inflation three years ahead fell to the lowest (2.8%) since the series began, but also indicated that expectations for wage growth over the coming year remained sticky," Daiwa Capital Markets analysts say in a note. The U.K. 10-year gilt yield falls 4 basis points to 4.032% while the 2-year gilt yield falls 1bp to 4.194%, Tradeweb data show. (miriam.mukuru@wsj.com)


Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires; Dow Jones Newswires; paul.larkins@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

04-04-24 1214ET