Basic Materials Roundup: Market Talk

The latest Market Talks covering Basic Materials. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.

0854 GMT – BHP’s confirmation that it is no longer considering a bid for Anglo American should de-risk the planned merger between Anglo and Teck Resources, Berenberg analyst Richard Hatch writes. BHP might have been stirred into action after Canadian politicians said they want more benefits and commitments from Anglo Teck, Hatch says. Anglo rebuffed approaches from BHP last year. BHP still appears to covet Anglo’s sizeable copper portfolio, but Anglo’s merger with Teck unlocks synergies that BHP couldn’t, Hatch says. Anglo American shares fall 0.2% to 27.03 pounds, while BHP’s London shares rise 0.4% to 20.23 pounds. (adam.whittaker@wsj.com)