BP wins Gulf drilling permit

US offshore regulators have approved BP's first drilling permit for an exploration well since it was hit by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in last year.

The permit, for drilling in the FTSE 100-listed oil giant's Kaskida field in the Gulf of Mexico, was approved after a "thorough well design, blowout preventer and containment capability reviews," the head of the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, Michael Bromwich, said.