Anglo American rejects £31bn takeover offer from mining rival BHP

All-share proposal had potential to be one of biggest deals in sector for decade but deemed ‘opportunistic’

• Business live – latest updates

The board of Anglo American, the London-listed mining company, has rejected a £31bn takeover approach from the Australian rival BHP.

BHP’s all-share proposed offer for Anglo American had the potential to be one of the biggest deals in the global mining sector for a decade but has attracted criticism from Anglo’s shareholders as being too low and “highly opportunistic”.