(Bloomberg) -- Gold-miner Endeavour Mining Plc rode a rally in the price of the precious metal to earn a place in the UK blue-chip index, replacing Smurfit Kappa Group Plc as the packaging company leaves the index following a merger with US rival WestRock Co.

Endeavour makes a quick return to the FTSE 100 index, having been replaced in the benchmark by airline EasyJet Plc at March’s index rebalancing. The miner’s shares have risen about 40% from a February low as spot gold hit new-record highs.

Index-provider FTSE Russell announced the change in a statement Wednesday, effective July 8, when the enlarged packaging group — called Smurfit WestRock — will be removed.

WestRock shares jumped last month after S&P Dow Jones Indices said Smurfit WestRock would be included in its indexes. 

©2024 Bloomberg L.P.