UPDATE 1-Global risk-off mood hits FTSE 100, Schroders jumps on buyout

The UK's FTSE 100 closed lower ‌on Thursday, as a risk-off mood in global markets offset a nearly 30% surge in shares of money manager Schroders after it agreed to a takeover by U.S. firm Nuveen. The blue-chip FTSE ‌100 closed down 0.7%, slipping off the record high it hit earlier in the ‌day.

The UK's FTSE 100 closed lower ‌on Thursday, as a risk-off mood in global markets offset a nearly 30% surge in shares of money manager Schroders after it agreed to a takeover by U.S. firm Nuveen.

The blue-chip FTSE ‌100 closed down 0.7%, slipping off the record high it hit earlier in the ‌day. The FTSE 250 mid-cap index was down 0.4%. Wall Street was a hit by a renewed selloff on AI concerns, with the main indexes falling more than 1%. Schroders' shares jumped as much as 28.5% ⁠to their highest ​in more than ⁠four years after U.S. asset manager Nuveen agreed to buy the company for 9.9 billion pounds ($13.5 billion) in ⁠one of Europe's largest fund management deals. Broader macro signals were also in focus as Britain's GDP ​showed the economy grew just 0.1% in the fourth quarter, matching the previous quarter's ⁠pace and partly reflecting uncertainty in the run-up to finance minister Rachel Reeves' November budget.

Thursday's figures, which showed ⁠a ​sharp downward revision to monthly GDP and a nearly 3% drop in business investment driven by volatile transport outlays, underscored why investors see the Bank of England as ⁠more likely than not to cut rates again in March. Among other movers, British American Tobacco dropped 0.4% ⁠after announcing job ⁠cuts and full-year results. Shares of pest-control firm Rentokil Initial fell 6.8% as U.S. peer Rollins missed Wall Street estimates for fourth-quarter revenue ‌and earnings.

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