London close: ENRC and miners give markets a boost

London's stock markets ended the week on a positive note, finishing with decent gains following a five-day losing streak, with mining stocks doing their best to recover after the recent sell-off.ENRC was a standout performer in the sector, surging by over a quarter by the close on the back of reports that a group of shareholders are working together to mount a takeover bid for the resources giant.Ahead of today's session, the FTSE 100 had lost 2.7% of its value after five consecutive falls as disappointing US earnings and concerns over global growth weighed on sentiment. Miners on the FTSE 350 had fallen by an average 9.14% since last Friday."Clients who went bargain hunting in the mining space after the aggressive sell off earlier in the week have been rewarded today, as the sector bounces back strongly," said Nick Dale-Lace, a Senior Sales Trader at CMC Markets.He said that in the absence of significant macro-economic news today, markets have remained focused on the unfolding man-hunt in Boston."The market has so far shaken off the ongoing terrorist threat, though obviously concerns remain at the forefront of everyone's minds as TV pictures capture the almost unprecedented search," he said.FTSE 100: ENRC rockets on takeover speculationMining stocks, which have borne the brunt of the reduction in risk appetite over the past week, were performing well today. Vedanta, EVRAZ and Fresnillo were high risers by the close.However, it was ENRC that was the standout performer, finishing the day nearly 27% higher after major shareholder Alexander Machkevitch said he was considering a takeover bid for the Kazakh miner. The Jewish billionaire released a statement saying he was seeking a consortium with fellow shareholders Alijan Ibragimov, Patokh Chodiev and the Kazakh government to make an offer for the company. By the close yesterday, the stock had slumped over 19% since the start of the year. Anglo American was also a high riser after announcing that production at its larger operations of iron ore and copper increased in the first quarter, when compared with last year, despite the company scaling back spending. Telecoms firm Vodafone was also in demand as rumours continue to circulate surrounding a possible buy-out of its 45% stake in its US wireless joint venture with Verizon. According to reports this morning, a deal could happen this year as fears about tax obstacles ease. Meanwhile, GlaxoSmithKline was trading lower ahead of its first-quarter update next week. There were reports this morning that the company is being investigated over claims it paid off firms to delay the launch of cheap versions of its anti-depression drug. Heading the other way was supermarket group Tesco, extending losses after its full-year results on Wednesday revealed its first annual profit decline in two decades.FTSE 250: Miners gain, Spectris plummetsAs on the top tier index, miners made gains as investors sought gains after a volatile week for the sector. Bumi, Centamin, Hochschild, and Lonmin all made strong gains by late in the session. However Kazakhmys, which owns a 26% stake in ENRC, was the best performer, tracking the miner higher on takeover speculation.African Barrick Gold was performing well one day after its first-quarter results showed an improved picture. Westhouse Securities reduced its target price for the stock today (reflecting revised gold-price forecasts) but said that the results "suggest a bit more room for optimism" following recent disappointments.Meanwhile, electrical engineering company Spectris reported an eight per cent fall in sales for the first quarter, reflecting a deferral of orders and shipment delays. The group experienced weak customer confidence across all its major regions in the first three months of the year. Sector peer Renishaw fell in sympathy.High Street bookie William Hill surged despite reporting that growth had moderated during the first quarter. The firm did say however that the Grand National after the quarter-end was a "major success", beating its record win achieved on the race in 2009.FTSE 100 - RisersEurasian Natural Resources Corp. (ENRC) 291.00p +26.63%Vedanta Resources (VED) 1,151.00p +6.08%Evraz (EVR) 161.80p +3.45%Fresnillo (FRES) 1,117.00p +2.85%Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 1,302.00p +2.84%International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 252.30p +2.60%Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 280.50p +2.41%HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 679.20p +2.40%Tullow Oil (TLW) 1,048.00p +2.34%Anglo American (AAL) 1,596.50p +2.21%FTSE 100 - FallersIMI (IMI) 1,174.00p -1.59%Wolseley (WOS) 3,133.00p -1.01%Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,123.00p -0.80%Tesco (TSCO) 363.00p -0.67%Schroders (SDR) 2,155.00p -0.55%Melrose Industries (MRO) 244.60p -0.53%BG Group (BG.) 1,038.00p -0.48%Capita (CPI) 853.00p -0.47%Aggreko (AGK) 1,769.00p -0.39%GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,652.00p -0.36%FTSE 250 - RisersKazakhmys (KAZ) 385.70p +24.38%African Barrick Gold (ABG) 179.10p +7.96%Bumi (BUMI) 259.30p +7.82%Centamin (DI) (CEY) 38.65p +6.01%Petropavlovsk (POG) 141.40p +5.52%Hochschild Mining (HOC) 242.60p +5.48%William Hill (WMH) 409.10p +4.74%NMC Health (NMC) 340.00p +4.62%Playtech Ltd. (PTEC) 599.00p +3.81%Thomas Cook Group (TCG) 121.50p +3.76%FTSE 250 - FallersSpectris (SXS) 1,908.00p -14.25%Renishaw (RSW) 1,551.00p -5.66%Laird (LRD) 198.00p -5.44%Jupiter Fund Management (JUP) 310.30p -2.61%Fenner (FENR) 354.50p -2.56%Interserve (IRV) 462.50p -2.53%SDL (SDL) 384.20p -2.46%Perform Group (PER) 489.00p -2.40%TalkTalk Telecom Group (TALK) 250.00p -2.31%Kentz Corporation Ltd. (KENZ) 372.70p -2.18%BC