U.K. equities closed higher on Wednesday as gains in mining, industrial metals & mining and aerospace & defense stocks helped push the benchmark higher.
The Investing.com United Kingdom 100 index rose 1.26% by the London closing bell, marking a fresh record level for the gauge.
Leading movers
Among the top performers on the Investing.com United Kingdom 100, Antofagasta PLC (LON:ANTO) led the session, surging 10.59% - an increase of 383.00 points - to finish at 4,000.00. Fresnillo PLC (LON:FRES) was also a strong performer, adding 4.77% or 178.00 points to close at 3,912.00. Anglo American PLC (LON:AAL) gained 4.63% or 162.00 points to end the session at 3,661.00.
Lagging names
On the downside, Unite Group PLC (LON:UTG) dropped 2.86% or 17.00 points to close at 578.00. BT Group PLC (LON:BT) fell 2.45% or 5.10 points to finish at 203.30, while National Grid PLC (LON:NG) declined 2.03% or 28.00 points to 1,348.50.
Market breadth favored advances, with 1,158 stocks rising versus 632 that fell on the London Stock Exchange; 519 issues finished unchanged.
Notable extremes and commodities
The session saw shares of Antofagasta reach an all-time high as the stock climbed 10.59% to 4,000.00.
In commodity markets, gold futures for April delivery rose 2.31% or 113.34 to $5,019.24 per troy ounce. Crude oil for April delivery gained 3.77% or 2.35 to $64.61 a barrel, while the April Brent contract increased 3.56% or 2.40 to trade at $69.82 a barrel.
Currencies and benchmarks
Currency moves were modest: GBP/USD was essentially flat, changing by 0.18% to 1.35, and EUR/GBP was little changed at 0.87, a 0.11% move. The US Dollar Index Futures advanced 0.37% to 97.42.
Investment product note appearing in the session copy
The session’s copy also referenced an investment research product, describing it as combining institutional-grade data with AI-powered insights to help identify potential investment opportunities for 2026. The messaging framed better data and analytic tools as a means to reduce costly mistakes and improve idea generation, though it did not claim guaranteed winners.
Overall, the close reflected strength concentrated in resource and defense-related sectors, more modest weakness in select utility and telecom names, and supportive moves in key commodity prices.