Xstrata and Glencore rise ahead of verdict The FTSE 100 made a broad rebound on Friday, led by resource stocks as the fate of one of the sector's biggest deals looked set to be decided. The board of Xstrata was expected to issue its opinion on the improved all share offer for the miner from Glencore. The trading house increased the ratio of its stock-swap moments before a vote on the initial offer was due at an extraordinary meeting, lifting it to 3.05 from 2.8, nearer the 3.25 called for by Qatar Holding, the sovereign wealth fund which owns 12 per cent of the miner. Glencore said its new offer represented a premium of 27 per cent; although Xstrata's board, using a different baseline to calculate the offer, put the premium at just 17.6 per cent in the immediate aftermath of the fresh price, saying it was "significantly lower than would be expected under a takeover." As the London trading session started, Glencore was 1.3 per cent higher at 373p and Xstrata was 0.4 per cent stronger at £10.53. Vedanta Resources was the best single performer on London's benchmark index as traders bet that the worries over global growth seen over the previous session took the sector too far, too fast. Stock in the Indian copper miner rose 2.7 per cent at £10.82. There were six miners in the list of the top 10 biggest risers. Financial stocks also rose, after FT reports that Spain was finalising details of a debt bailout with the EU lifted the mood. Such a move is widely seen as inevitable, and Madrid's reluctance to accept the need for help has caused some uncertainty. Lloyds Banking Group led the sector, up 0.9 per cent at 39.7p. "The FT report is likely to become a major talking point in coming sessions as it suggests an economic reform programme will be unveiled next Thursday," said Stan Shamu, strategist at IG. Volumes on the FTSE 100 were expected to be large, with the simultaneous expiry of stock index options, futures contracts, and options on individual stocks due at various points throughout the session, a phenomenon known as "triple witching." In the meantime, the gains were broad, with only 15 stocks falling and the majority of them by small margins. The index rose 27 points to 5,881.68, a loss of 0.5 per cent. National Grid made the biggest single fall, down 1 per cent to 687p, after JPMorgan cut its rating on the stock from "neutral" to "underweight." Most of the rest of the fallers shared defensive properties. Among them Imperial Tobacco lost 0.6 per cent to £22.85.