11th Jun 2026 14:56
(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 100 was up 0.9% at 10,348.86 in afternoon trade on Thursday.
Asia-focused Standard Chartered, Prudential and HSBC were the top performers on the index following recent losses.
Intertek was also in the black after saying the 'put up or shut up' deadline for EQT to make a takeover offer has been extended as the Swedish private equity firm needs more time for due diligence.
The inspection, product testing and certification group announced last month that it had received a £9.4bn takeover proposal from EQT that it would be minded to recommend. The final offer from EQT was £60 per share, up from £58 in cash. Once the final dividend of 107.7p per share is included, the total value is £61.077 per share.
"Further to that announcement, EQT's due diligence and the agreement of definitive transaction documentation have been progressed over the last four weeks," it said on Thursday. "EQT has requested a short period of additional time to complete its confirmatory due diligence and governance processes."
On the downside, safety equipment firm Halma tumbled as it posted a jump in full-year earnings despite an uncertain economic backdrop. Investors were likely reacting to the company's conservative full-year outlook, as it predicted low double-digit percentage organic growth - less than 2026's 16.6% uplift - and unchanged adjusted EBIT.
Elsewhere, ICG lost ground as it traded without entitlement to the dividend.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,852.00p 3.60%
Prudential (PRU) 958.60p 3.56%
HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 1,326.00p 2.66%
Kingfisher (KGF) 286.30p 2.61%
3i Group (III) 2,240.00p 2.61%
Anglo American (AAL) 3,798.00p 2.53%
Airtel Africa (AAF) 354.80p 2.42%
Aviva (AV.) 626.00p 2.12%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,136.50p 2.10%
Intertek Group (ITRK) 5,585.00p 2.10%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Halma (HLMA) 3,962.00p -14.43%
ICG (ICG) 1,723.00p -4.69%
The Sage Group (SGE) 819.60p -4.02%
Rightmove (RMV) 428.10p -2.09%
Autotrader Group (AUTO) 460.30p -2.05%
Flutter Entertainment (DI) (FLTR) 8,388.00p -1.94%
Barratt Redrow (BTRW) 244.30p -1.88%
Experian (EXPN) 2,534.00p -1.36%
Diploma (DPLM) 6,875.00p -1.29%
Metlen Energy & Metals (MTLN) 41.01p -1.16%