The FTSE 100 index closed up 1.01 per cent or 76.35 points to 7,643.42 this afternoon, while the FTSE 250 finished up 1.82 per cent or 396.55 points to 22,184.01.
Strong performances by cybersecurity firm Darktrace, British Airways owner IAG, and packaging and paper group Mondi gave the blue-chip index a boost.
Speculation about a merger between mutuals LV and Royal London has ended, with the former confirming that discussions between them had revealed that such a deal ‘would not be in the best interests of LV members’.
Group CEO Barry O’Dwyer said nothing changes for Royal London members and the firm looks forward ‘to sharing a substantial level of profits with our eligible customers in April, as we normally do’.
GlaxoSmithKline posted a total operating profit of £6.2billion for 2021, with the drugmaker citing pandemic sales, growth in pharmaceuticals sales and tight control of ongoing costs as the key drivers of a strong fourth quarter.
GSK racked up £1.4billion in Covid-related sales last year, as it beat quarterly forecasts, and the firm expects pandemic-related sales to reach similar levels this year.
British chip designer Arm looks set to join the stock market in New York following the collapse of a £50billion takeover by American suitors.
In a bitter blow to the City of London, the company’s owner, Masayoshi Son, said he plans to float the Cambridge firm on the technology-heavy Nasdaq exchange.
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GSK said it expected pandemic-related sales in 2022 to be at similar levels to 2021 but that these would contribute less to profit due to lower margins on its antibody treatment
