Laird leaps after £493m US bid

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The UK electronics group Laird has rebuffed a £493m cash offer from the US group Cooper Industries as too low and "opportunistic". Shares in Laird jumped 37 per cent to 188.9p as investors predicted the bidding could go above Cooper's 185p a share offer.

As part of the manufacturing giant Cammell-Laird, the company turned out battleships including Britain's first aircraft carrier, HMS Ark Royal, in the 1930s, as well as London Underground trains and taxis, before the group was broken up and Laird moved into electronics.