London, March 19, 2026, 14:00 GMT
Anglo American shares fell nearly 8% on Thursday, caught in a broad selloff in miners as metal prices slid and investors braced for a longer stretch of high interest rates. Reuters/LSEG data showed the stock at 2,860 pence, down 7.68%, after trading as low as 2,838 pence. 1
The move lands at a bad moment for Anglo. The London-listed miner is trying to complete a proposed $53 billion all-share merger with Teck Resources, sell De Beers and lean harder into copper, all while markets reprice growth-sensitive stocks around an oil shock and a firmer dollar. 2
The broader tape was ugly. Reuters reported London’s FTSE 100 was down 1.9% by 1020 GMT and the metals and mining sector was off 7.2%; earlier market coverage showed Anglo, Antofagasta and Rio Tinto among the heaviest fallers in the index. 3
Commodity prices did the damage. Reuters said copper fell to its lowest in three months and gold dropped more than 5% as surging oil prices, a stronger dollar and fresh inflation worries pushed traders to dial back bets on rate cuts; the Bank of England later kept rates at 3.75% and warned inflation could rise to 3.5% in the next two quarters. 4
There was some deal progress to point to. Anglo’s Brazil CEO Ana Sanches said on Wednesday the company expected final regulatory approval for the Teck transaction around year-end, broadly in line with Chief Executive Duncan Wanblad’s February view that China and South Korea would clear it between September and March. 2
If it goes through, the Teck tie-up would create the world’s fifth-largest copper producer with annual output above 1.2 million metric tons. That prize helps explain why Anglo still sits near the center of mining M&A after BHP’s failed pursuit, even as BHP’s new CEO Brandon Craig said the group would “put its head down” on organic growth and that any buyout would need to be compelling. 5
Anglo’s own backdrop is messier. The miner reported a $3.7 billion loss in February after another writedown at De Beers, cut its dividend, and said sales or separations of De Beers, steelmaking coal and nickel assets were still underway as it narrows its focus to copper and iron ore. 5
It also cut 2026 copper guidance last month to 700,000-760,000 tons from 760,000-820,000 tons, citing lower output at Collahuasi in Chile. Wanblad said then: “We are committed to seeing our portfolio transformation through to its conclusion.” 6
For now, the market looks more interested in macro stress than in deal logic. Morningstar’s chief European equity strategist Michael Field said “we’re not sure there’s enough money and confidence right now to drag markets upward,” a view that fits a session in which investors were less willing to step in after a selloff in economy-linked stocks. 7
But there is a risk on the other side too. If Chinese or South Korean approvals slip, if copper stays weak, or if a De Beers sale drags, Anglo’s reshaping story could lose traction and the shares may keep trading with the sector rather than on the longer-term copper case management is trying to build. 2
