U.K. Stocks Climb, Led by Segro as Qatar Raises Songbird Stake

By Sarah Jones

Oct. 12 (Bloomberg) -- U.K. stocks advanced, led by property-related companies after Qatar Holding LLC raised its stake in Songbird Estates Plc, which controls more than half the buildings in London’s Canary Wharf financial district.

Segro Plc, the U.K.’s largest owner of business parks and warehouses, and Liberty International Plc both rose more than 1.5 percent. Tullow Oil Plc gained on a report the company may raise $1.5 billion selling some of its stake in Ugandan oil fields.

The benchmark FTSE 10 Index added 23.52, or 0.5 percent, to 5,185.39 at 8:53 a.m. in London, extending last week’s steepest weekly advance since July. The FTSE All-Share Index rose 0.5 percent today and Ireland’s ISEQ Index rose less than 0.1 percent.

Segro increased 2.2 percent to 371.4 pence, while Liberty International, the U.K.’s largest shopping-center owner, climbed 1.7 percent to 493 pence.

Qatar Holding, part of the country’s sovereign wealth fund, has taken up its rights to 24 percent of the ordinary shares issued by Songbird as the Persian Gulf country seeks international investment opportunities.

Qatar is now the largest investor in Songbird with a total investment of more than 350 million pounds ($555.4 million). Shares of Songbird jumped 4.2 percent to 1.49 pence.

Tullow Oil climbed 1.4 percent to 1,225 pence. The Sunday Times reported the company has appointed Standard Chartered Plc to sell up to half its stakes in two Ugandan oil fields.

Tullow Oil’s projects in the African country are worth as much as $5 billion, the Sunday Times said, without saying where it obtained the information.

To contact the reporters on this story: Sarah Jones in London at sjones35@bloomberg.net.