Anglo American (AAL LN) chief says tech giants are reportedly eyeing a stake to secure supply in metals, FT reports citing sources

Strategic minority stakes taken by end-users to lock in supply have a long history in metals, where the pattern has been offtake agreements paired with equity rather than outright control, particularly in copper and other inputs where buyers fear being price-takers in a tightening market. The distinction that matters here is between a genuine stake bid and reported interest relayed through the company itself: a chief executive citing unnamed interest tends to surface during periods when a company is defending its standalone plan against takeover approaches, and Anglo has recent form as a target of a large rival, a process that ended without a deal after repeated extensions. Remarks of this kind function partly as a signal to existing suitors and to shareholders that alternative demand for the equity and the underlying production exists. The mechanics to track are whether any named buyer emerges, whether interest is in the listed parent or in individual assets, and whether it comes with offtake terms, since asset-level interest has historically been the more actionable path than a stake in the diversified group. Sourcing is second-hand and unattributed, so the immediate tell is follow-up reporting and any formal statement rather than the share reaction to the headline itself.