Rolls-Royce shares hit a record high as defence stocks rally and FTSE 100 climbs to 10,672p

Rolls-Royce was among a plethora of City heavyweights surging on Wednesday, aiding the FTSE 100 in securing another record.

The aerospace behemoth rose by 2.2 per cent to 1,325.50p, reaching a new all-time high and surpassing January’s previous peak of 1,305.00p.

This surge coincided with defence giant BAE Systems leaping nearly four per cent higher to 2,103.00p after initiating new plans to distribute cash to shareholders. The company’s defence counterpart Babcock also saw a two per cent increase.

The defence sector has enjoyed a robust start to the week following news that the UK is considering achieving its target to spend three per cent of GDP on defence much sooner than the previously set goal of the end of the next Parliament.

Gains across the defence sector and other major industries contributed to the FTSE 100 building on Tuesday’s record close and advancing another one per cent by midday on Wednesday, hitting 10,672.50p, as reported by City AM.

Joshua Mahony, chief market analyst at Scope Markets, said: “What was once perceived as a boring index full of old and unexciting companies has now turned into an area of relative stability amid ongoing concerns around the implications of AI.

“The FTSE’s climb is broad-based, with significant momentum in energy, defence (amid Iran tensions), financials (driven by rate outlooks), and mining (as metal prices rally).”

In the banking sector, HSBC made the most significant move, leaping over two per cent to nearly 1,300p, closely followed by Barclays, which reached 484.40p after a two per cent rise.

Mining company Antofagasta surged four per cent by midday, with counterparts Anglo American and Glencore up almost three per cent. This followed Glencore’s announcement of plans to distribute $2bn to shareholders despite a dip in profits.

“Glencore’s second-half recovery may not rival Liverpool’s turnaround in Istanbul two decades ago, but the latter part of the year did represent a significant improvement – driven by strong metal prices and higher copper output,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.

“Like most of its peers, Glencore sees copper as the route to growth thanks to the role the metal is playing in AI data centres, renewable energy, and electric vehicle infrastructure. Building greater scale in copper production was a key driver behind the talks over a combination with Rio Tinto.”

The telecoms group lost 397,500 mobile customers in 2025 and forecasts underlying earnings will fall 3-5% in 2026

Telecommunications giant Virgin Media O2 has issued a warning over declining sales and earnings in 2026 as it revealed substantial mobile customer losses following price increases.

The company said it shed 397,500 mobile customers on a net basis last year, with a 164,800 drop in the fourth quarter driven largely by O2 price rises.

Last October, Virgin Media O2 announced it would increase prices for its 15.6 million mobile customers by £2.50 a month from spring 2026, having previously indicated the rise would be £1.80.

The business also said it lost 138,400 broadband customers on a net basis in 2025 after losing another 16,700 in the final three months.

Annual results showed underlying earnings declined 0.4% over the year to £3.9 billion following a 2.4% fall in the final quarter.

With the recent deal with business-to-business provider Daisy excluded, it said earnings grew 0.9% over the year and dropped 1.3% over the last three months.

Virgin Media O2 warned of sharper declines in the year ahead as “challenging market conditions” are set to persist.

It is forecasting a fall in underlying earnings of 3% to 5%, excluding its acquisition of Daisy, whilst underlying total service revenues are also expected to decline by 3% to 5%.

Virgin Media O2 and Lancashire-based Daisy Group last year merged their business communications and IT operations to form a telecommunications company with sales of approximately £1.4 billion a year, called O2 Daisy. Virgin Media O2 has attributed the reduced sales forecast to “reflects heightened promotional intensity and ongoing uncertainty in the consumer fixed market, alongside the planned streamlining of the business-to-business product portfolio”.

The company plans to implement cost savings to counterbalance the effects.

Lutz Schuler, CEO of Virgin Media O2, stated: “While we expect challenging market conditions to continue in 2026, we are well positioned to seize the right opportunities in each of our business areas – consumer, business-to-business and wholesale – and the foundations we’re putting in place today will help to build long-term customer trust and fuel future profitability and cash generation.”

Virgin Media O2 was established in 2021 following the £31 billion mega merger between Virgin Media, owned by Liberty Global, and O2, the network owned by Spanish competitor Telefonica.

On Wednesday, Liberty Global, Telefonica and private equity firm InfraVia collaborated to purchase British alternative fibre company Substantial Group for £2 billion.

The consortium stated that the joint venture deal will bolster its position in competition against BT’s Openreach, the UK’s largest fibre broadband company and network operator.

Substantial, which operates fibre network Netomnia, is projected to have over 3.4 million fibre premises and more than 500,000 customers by the time the deal concludes, according to the companies.

Nexfibre – the joint venture between Liberty Global, Telefonica and InfraVia – is acquiring Substantial in a transaction designed to extend its footprint to eight million properties nationwide by the close of 2027.

Competitors have already flagged possible competition issues surrounding the transaction.

Simon Holden, chief executive of CityFibre, commented: “There is an 80% overlap between these two players and, if the deal goes ahead, it would significantly reduce competition and the choice available to consumers, as well as force hundreds of thousands of Netomnia customers back to Virgin Media O2.”

He added: “Given the scale of this overlap, the CMA must thoroughly examine the deal.”

“Competition has driven lower prices, faster speeds and better services – and this deal risks re-establishing an ineffective duopoly of BT and VMO2 and undermining the significant progress the UK has made.”

Bayer is proposing a $7.25 billion plan to settle thousands of lawsuits claiming its Roundup weedkiller caused cancer — a high-stakes effort to cap years of mounting legal exposure that will pressure the company’s finances in the near term.

“This is a choice for speed and containment over a protracted legal battle,” CEO Bill Anderson said Tuesday, describing the agreement as a pivotal step toward limiting long-running litigation tied to the herbicide.

Bayer said it is increasing its total litigation reserves to nearly $12 billion and expects about $6 billion in legal payouts in 2026 alone — enough to push free cash flow into negative territory this year.

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“Under the proposed class settlement agreement, the largest of the annual payments would be funded this year,” CFO Wolfgang Nickl said. “Therefore, we are expecting a negative free cash flow in 2026.”

Bayer’s Roundup is shown for sale in Encinitas, California, June 26, 2017. (Reuters/Mike Blake/File Photo)

To finance the resolution, the company has secured an $8 billion loan facility.

The German pharmaceuticals and agriculture giant said its Monsanto unit filed a proposed nationwide class settlement in St. Louis that would create a long-term compensation program for people who say they developed non-Hodgkin lymphoma after using Roundup at home or on the job.

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The plan would fund payouts through capped annual payments over as many as 21 years. People exposed to Roundup before mid-February 2026 who have already been diagnosed – or who receive a diagnosis within 16 years after court approval – could qualify. Payments would be determined by a tiered system based on exposure and medical factors, with some individuals potentially receiving up to about $198,000 or more.

Bayer AG CEO Bill Anderson. (Henning Kaiser/picture alliance via Getty Images)

Bayer is facing about 65,000 plaintiffs in U.S. courts. The deal requires a judge’s approval and enough participation from claimants. The company can walk away if too many opt out.

“We would anticipate that the vast majority – almost all – the plaintiffs will opt in,” Anderson said. “If it doesn’t work that way, then we don’t have a deal in the end.”

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It does not admit wrongdoing and maintains that regulators, including the EPA, have found glyphosate safe when used as directed.

Separately, the U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear a case that could limit future lawsuits by determining whether federal labeling law overrides state-level failure-to-warn claims – a decision that could reshape the company’s long-term legal risk.

Bottles of Monsanto’s Roundup are seen for sale at a retail store in Glendale, California, on June 19, 2018. (Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)

“A decision in our favor would address cases not covered by the settlement, including significant adverse pending judgments,” Anderson said, adding that the high court review is critical to the company’s broader litigation containment strategy.

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For consumers and farmers, Roundup remains widely available. But for Bayer, the proposed settlement and the pending high court decision represent a pivotal effort to contain litigation costs and stabilize its balance sheet after years of uncertainty.

UKAI, the UK’s trade association for the AI industry, has appointed global communications agency Centropy PR as its agency of record.

The group, which represents companies of all sizes with an interest in AI, from startups to industry leaders, supports firms by ensuring their voices are heard in policy matters. UKAI works closely with the UK Government and regulators, making sure that AI policies foster innovation and business growth particularly for British AI businesses.

Recent events include policy sessions with Secretary of State for Business and Trade, Peter Kyle MP and Darren Jones MP, the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister.

The trade association is designed to serve as a bridge between policymakers and the AI community, offering a platform for feedback on legislation, programmes, and initiatives. The group is committed to supporting the transformative role that AI can play in the UK’s social and economic development, creating jobs and growth across the country.

Centropy will provide a full suite of communications services to UKAI, including media strategy, journalist relations, event support, and policy guidance. The agency, founded in 2017 counts FTSE and Nasdaq listed global tech brands in its portfolio, with offices in London and San Diego and a global team of 20 PR staff.

Tim Flagg, CEO, UKAI said: “As the UK’s AI sector matures, our globally respected institutional and professional foundations give us a unique opportunity to build trusted, responsible AI and lead in the areas where the UK can genuinely compete, making a strategic communications partner essential to telling that story to media and policymakers. The Centropy team have demonstrated outstanding media connections, a deep understanding of the news cycle and policy expertise, landing us major media opportunities within the first few weeks of working together.”

Steven George-Hilley, CEO, Centropy PR said: “UKAI sets itself apart from other industry associations by genuinely championing the mission of British companies of all shapes and sizes. Britain has some of the finest AI talent in the world and we look forward to working with Tim and UKAI members across the UK to take this message to market.”

Amy Ingham

Amy is a newly qualified journalist specialising in business journalism at Business Matters with responsibility for news content for what is now the UK’s largest print and online source of current business news.