The FTSE 100 was on the front foot on Monday as the mood around China improved, helping to lift mining companies which were also boosted by a rally in precious metals.

London’s leading index was 0.25% higher at 8,441 at the time of writing.

“Investors have plenty to keep them occupied, with geopolitical uncertainty butting up against China growth hopes and a few domestic nerves ahead of Wednesday’s inflation figures,” says AJ Bell head of financial analysis Danni Hewson.

“Optimism still seems to be the primary driving force with mining stocks up significantly after copper prices hit fresh record highs, thanks in part to new measures designed to prop up China’s ailing property sector.”

Precious metal prices also helped the case for the FTSE 100’s miners as worries about Iran sent gold to a record high.

“Nervousness about the direction of geopolitics has pushed gold to fresh record highs, reaching $2,438 per ounce. Demand for the safe-haven asset has surged as investors have been digesting news of the death of Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi who is believed to have been killed with others including foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in a helicopter crash,” said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets, Hargreaves Lansdown.

“Demand for the metal has also likely to have been pushed up by renewed speculation that the Federal Reserve will be minded to cut interest rates a couple of times this year.”

Interest rate expectations have been the core driver of precious metals in 2024 seeing gold consistently break to fresh highs.

Fresnillo was the FTSE 100’s top gainer as the silver-focused miner tracked prices higher. Fresnillo was up 4.2% at the time of writing.

Glencore added 1.6% and Antofagasta ticked 0.8% higher as copper prices rose.

Rolls Royce shares added 2.4% and the rip-roaring bull run looked to remain intact as the stock bounced of a key trend line.

Ryanair shares slipped on Monday as investors chose to focus on the missed opportunity of delayed Boeing aeroplane deliveries rather than record profits amid the travel boom.

Ryanair Holdings today reported a 34% growth in full-year profit after tax, as traffic grew by 9% to 184 million passengers, which is 23% more than the pre-Covid levels, despite delays in the delivery of new aeroplanes from Boeing.

“The pandemic hangover seems to be truly over for Ryanair as the low cost carrier posted record profit of €1.95bn. A milder winter and early Easter helped boost the slow season as demand for travel shows no signs of letting up,” said Adam Vettese, analyst at investment platform eToro.

Increased revenues helped offset a significantly higher fuel bill, as hedged oil prices rose from $65 per barrel in the fiscal year 2023 to $89 per barrel in the fiscal year 2024. Despite Boeing delivery delays, traffic grew by 9% to 183.7 million passengers.

Revenue per passenger increased by 15%, with average fares rising by 21% and ancillary revenue increasing by 3%. The fuel bill rose by 32%, amounting to an increase of €1.25bn, reaching €5.14bn.

Although the financials were broadly strong, load factor underperformed, while airlines focused on higher fares for growth.

“Ryanair slightly underperformed its 92-93% load factor target for the winter 2023-24 travel season. Third Bridge experts believe airlines are consciously not prioritising load factor to keep fares slightly higher,” said Olly Anibaba, Analyst at Third Bridge.

Ultimately, Ryanair shares fell on Monday due to disappointment around the outlook for earnings in the revised scenarios caused by a small fleet than previously thought.

“The Boeing delivery delays will be a huge problem for Ryanair. Third Bridge experts expect Ryanair to receive only half of what was promised, potentially reducing passenger volumes by 5-10 million. Ryanair can offset some of the impact on profits by removing the worst-performing routes from their network,” said Anibaba

Keywords Studios, a leading provider of services to the video games and entertainment industries, announced today that it is in advanced talks regarding a potential £1.4bn cash takeover offer from EQT, a global investment firm.

According to the company, EQT has proposed a cash offer of 2,550p per share to acquire the entire issued and outstanding share capital of Keywords Studios. This represents a significant premium over the company’s closing share price of 1,722p on Friday.

Keywords Studios shares were 63% higher at 2,405p at the time of writing on Monday.

The potential 2,550p offer follows four previous unsolicited proposals from EQT over recent months that were rejected by the Keywords Studios board. However, the board has now indicated it would be “minded to recommend” the latest proposal to shareholders if a firm intention to make an offer is announced on those financial terms.

The Dublin-based company provides a range of technical services for video game developers and publishers, including art creation, software engineering, audio production, gameplay testing and player support.

In a statement released on the market on Monday, Keywords Studios said its board “remains confident” in the company’s growth strategy and that EQT is “supportive of this strategy” to build a global platform serving the video games and entertainment industries through organic growth and acquisitions.

British Land has announced it is selling its 50% stake in the Meadowhall Shopping Centre in Sheffield to its joint venture partner Norges Bank Investment Management for £360m.

The deal is part of British Land’s strategy to focus more on retail parks and reduce its exposure to enclosed shopping malls after the pandemic, which accelerated online shopping trends. Out-of-town retail parks have proved to be successful due to the ease of accessing shops and the opportunity for a greater leisure experience.

Including the recent £7m sale of some ancillary land, the total valuation of the Meadowhall estate is £734m, which is 3% above the September 2023 book value.

After repaying around £200m in net debt, British Land expects to receive proceeds of approximately £156m from the transaction.

The deal, which is anticipated to close in July 2024, will lower British Land’s proportionally consolidated loan-to-value ratio by 2.7 percentage points for the first half of 2024. British Land will remain as the asset manager for Meadowhall and continue earning fees.

The sale proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes, including reinvesting in retail parks aligned with British Land’s strategic shift away from enclosed shopping centres that have been under pressure.

“Following the sale of Meadowhall, 93% of our portfolio is now in our preferred segments of retail parks, campuses and London urban logistics,” said Simon Carter, Chief Executive of British Land.

“We will continue to grow our retail park portfolio; with low capex requirements parks offer attractive cash returns and at 99% occupancy we are delivering strong rental growth.”