Five-year record for FTSE

A £12.7bn (€18.5bn) takeover proposal from steel giant Mittal helped fuel European markets and lift the FTSE 100 Index to its best level since 2001 today.

The attempt by Mittal to merge the world’s two largest steel operators through a takeover of Luxembourg-based Arcelor added to an already strong session after gains of 1% for the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the tech-led Nasdaq.

As a result, the Footsie was able to build on a strong week to add 56 points to stand at 5778.6 by mid-morning.

The main impact of the Mittal deal was seen on FTSE 250 Index listed Corus, which gained more than 11% – up 7p at 69.75p – as investors eyed further consolidated in a sector described by Mittal owner Lakshmi Mittal as still “relatively fragmented”.

Further developments in two other takeover episodes also benefited the market while there were more strong numbers from top flight newcomer PartyGaming.

The online casino company, which owns PartyPoker.com, jumped 6% early in the session but settled back to stand 2.5p lower at 143p, even though it impressed analysts with a 65% jump in quarterly revenues.

The takeover activity involved P&O, which rose to the top of the Footsie risers board after Dubai Ports World came back with a £3.9bn (€5.1bn) offer to trump the £3.5 billion proposed by Singapore-based PSA yesterday. P&O stood 21p higher at 543p, a gain of 4%.

One of the most surprising moves came in the second-tier after car dealership Pendragon proposed a three-way combination with Lookers and Reg Vardy.

It made two approaches to Lookers after tabling a £450m (€656.6m) cash offer for Vardy last month, but saw its overtures rejected each time.

All three saw their share prices move sharply, with Lookers up 79p at 588p, Pendragon ahead 11% or 53.5p at 536p and Vardy down 49.5p at 860.5p.