Boliden AB (publ)

Mining stocks also advanced as copper prices climbed.

Boliden, Antofagasta and KGHM gained between 4.6% and 6.3%, while the broader European mining index jumped 2%.

It's now time for The Watchlist.

In Australia, companies trading ex-dividend today include CSL, Brambles, Northern Star Resources, Evolution Mining, NetWealth and IGO.

And here's what you need to know today.

The biggest mining M&A story of the morning is Swedish metals giant Boliden has struck a deal to acquire Botou Random's controlling stake in Nexa Resources for approximately one point three one billion dollars at fifteen dollars and twenty-nine cents per share, and it represents a fourteen point two percent premium to Nexa's twenty-day volume-weighted average price.

Botou Random will receive twenty-one point four million newly issued Boliden shares, representing roughly seven percent of Boliden.

Nexa is one of the world's leading zinc producers, operating five polymetallic mines and three smelters across Brazil and Peru.

Nexa Resources trades on the NYSE and as NEXA.

One is funded by Tech Resources, which is one of Canada's largest mining companies.

And then another a joint venture funded by Boliden, which is the Swedish multinational.

So, you know, we've got a lot of optionality in those projects, but those are being funded by external partners.

And then, you know, a few years ago we did drill off a lithium resource and we, you know, when the price crashed, we kind of shelved our plans for bringing that into production.