Europe midday: Stoxx, DAX hit records as Rio-Glencore talks boost sentiment

9th Jan 2026 11:26

(Sharecast News) - European shares powered to a new record high on Friday with geopolitics and a potential mega-merger of mining giants Rio Tinto and Glencore driving sentiment.

The pan-regional Stoxx 600 index was up 0.59% to 607.4 at 1153 GMT - a new intra-day high. Britain's mining heavy FTSE 100 was up 0.51% to sit above 10,000 points and Germany's DAX also hit a fresh high of 25,227.

Miners Glencore and Rio Tinto confirmed on they were in preliminary talks about a possible combination of some or all of their businesses, which could include an all-share merger - a deal that would create the world's largest mining company valued at $207bn.

Glencore shares surged 9% on the news while Rio stock was down 2.1%.

"Details are thin on the ground, but a ... full combination would create a global leader in multiple industrial metals including iron ore and transition metals such as copper, cobalt and lithium," said Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Derren Nathan.

"But M&A isn't an automatic path to extracting value for investors, with Rio's Australian shares down 6% and Glencore ending Thursday in negative territory. Under the UK's takeover code, the management teams now have until 5th February to outline a compelling case for both sets of shareholders."

Defence stocks rose again as war in Ukraine raged on, US President Donald Trump said he didn't need to abide by international law and ownership of Greenland was preferable to a treaty.

Meanwhile, eyes will be on US jobs data, which could be the first print of clear information afyer the record federal government shutdown last year which hit the accuracy of labour and inflation data for October and November.

There is also the Supreme Court ruling on the validity of Trump's tariff policies.

Oil prices surged as tensions rose within Iran with protests mounting against the Islamic regime, which shut off internet access to stifle the spread of information. Brent crude gained 0.77% to $62 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate up 0.78% to $58.2.

In other equity news, Sainsbury's shares were down 5% as the UK supermarket chain reported a 3.4% rise in underlying sales for the third quarter and reiterated its full-year guidance for profit of more than £1bn, roughly in line with last year.

Tecan Group also jumped after the Swiss lab automation company confirmed 2025 profit targets and a rise in orders.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com