London's FTSE 100 extends gains as commodities, Petrofac shine

UK's export-oriented FTSE 100 extended gains on Thursday, led by precious and base metals miners, while oilfield services provider Petrofac surged nearly 70% to clock its biggest intraday jump on a deal worth 13 billion euros ($14.09 billion).

Petrofac Ltd said it has been awarded a massive framework agreement with Hitachi Energy by Dutch-German electricity grid operator TenneT to supply offshore platforms and onshore converter stations. The FTSE 100 rose 0.3%, while the FTSE 250 added 0.7% by 0717 GMT.

Boosting the benchmark index, industrial metals and precious metals miners added 1% and 1.1%, respectively. Meanwhile, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said February car production rose 13.1% in its first monthly increase in three, helped by an easing of supply-chain snags and robust output in both domestic and overseas markets.

The FTSE 350 Automobiles and Parts sector added 2.4% and is one among top-performing sectors this quarter. Shares of SSE PLC advanced 2.6% after the power company lifted its annual profit expectations, helped by continued strong performance of its flexible generation plant.

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