FTSE soars as no-deal hints knock pound

The FTSE 100 put in a strong performance on what should have been a quiet day for London’s blue-chip index.

Deals galore and a plunging pound helped the FTSE close the day up 137.55 points at 7,686.61.

Typically, the index rises when the pound falls, due to it being primarily made up of international mining and oil stocks that have little exposure to the UK and trade in US dollars.

At the UK market close, the pound was down 1.24 per cent at $1.2228, and lost 1.34 per cent against the euro to 1.0981.

The fall came as Boris Johnson’s government hardened its rhetoric around Brexit, with cabinet minister Michael Gove writing that a “nodeal is now a very real prospect”.

Just Eat was the biggest riser, closing up 22.7 per cent at 780p, as bosses announced a £9 billion merger with Dutch rivals Takeaway.com. London Stock Exchange Group confirmed talks to acquire data vendor Refinitiv ,inamovethat would create a financial information giant.

Under the terms of the possible deal, LSE Group would acquire Refinitiv, maker of the Eikon software, for $27bn (£21.9bn). Shares in LSE Group closed up 15.3 per cent at 6,542p.

Just nine companies in the FTSE 100 saw their shares fall on Monday. These included insurer Hiscox, which closed down 0.11 per cent at 1,770p as the company said profits rose in the six months to 30 June, despite an uptick in the number of claims compared with last year.

There was minimal movement from Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland, despite being named as two of five banks facing a £1bn civil lawsuit over a currency exchange cartel.