Power Metal Resources PLC in demand after finding anomalies at Botswana project

() added 4% to 2.45p before close after finding extensive anomalies at the South Ghanzi Project in Botswana.

These findings align closely with previous fieldwork conducted and the established regional exploration model for the discovery of major copper/silver deposits within the Kalahari Copper Belt.

“The exploration story at South Ghanzi continues to progress at pace and we eagerly await the next phase of results and drill testing of several of these high-priority targets,” said Paul Johnson, the chief executive of Power Metal Resources.

2.40pm: Sage Group edges higher after expressing confidence on cloud-based business

Sage Group PLC () was up 4% to 646p in the afternoon after the latest results showed it may be heading in the right direction.

The accountancy software group expressed confidence about the investment in its, saying this will prove itself as the global economy emerges from the pandemic.

However, profits fell by a third in its latest half-year after the firm upped marketing to encourage customers to switch to cloud-based services. Revenues were 4% lower at £937mln though the underlying performance was better.

1.30pm: Physiomics jumps after securing new contract with Merck

() jumped 11% to 6.65p in the early afternoon on the back of a further contract with German giant Merck.

The consultancy said this contract is additional to the initial tranche of projects with Merck announced in December, with a value of £270,000, to be completed by August.

The current contract will be completed over the next two to three months, the AIM-listed firm said.

12.15pm: Rockhopper Exploration surges after receiving update on arbitration against Italy

() surged 13% to 9.59p at noon after updating the market on its international arbitration against Italy in relation to the Ombrina Mare field.

The tribunal said it should make a decision by July and will confirm the timeframe by the end of June.

“Rockhopper continues to believe it has strong prospects of recovering very significant monetary damages – on the basis of lost profits – as a result of the Republic of Italy’s breaches of the Energy Charter Treaty. All costs associated with the arbitration are funded on a non-recourse basis from a specialist arbitration funder,” the oiler said.

11.15am: Sanne Group climbs after rejecting £1.3bn private equity bid

() climbed 23% to 744p in late morning after rejecting a takeover offer by private equity firm Cinven which valued the company at £1.3bn.

Shareholders were offered 830p per share, a 22% premium to the previous closing price, with the possibility to still receive the final dividend of 9.9p declared on 19 March.

Cinven is now considering its position and has to make another offer or withdraw its interest by 11 June based on City regulation.

10am: Miners retreat after iron ore prices slide

Miners topped the blue-chip losers list in mid-morning due to a 9.5% slide in iron ore prices in China.

The commodity price has seen a rally over the past week as demand outstripped supply, so analysts expect it to claw back losses shortly.

() was the hardest hit with a 3% dip to 471.1p, while Antofagasta plc (), () and () were all down 2% to 1,772.75p, 2,208.25p and 6,181.5p respectively.

Elsewhere, in the retail sector,  () shed 3% to 70.46p after saying that it’s unclear whether the current good trading reflects strong underlying performance or pent up demand.

The stationary retailer has reopened most of its sites, except those in the Republic of Ireland due to resume trading on Monday.

Online sales remain “significantly” ahead of pre-pandemic levels even if they have dipped after the reopening of stores.

9am: Velocity Composites rises after signing new contract with major client

Velocity Composites PLC () rose by a quarter to 25p on Friday after signing a new three-year contract with a major Tier 1 aerostructures manufacturer based in Hampshire.

It has a value of £4mln per…