The FTSE 100 index climbed above 10,000 points for the first time as trading in 2026 kicked off on Friday, building on a year when it rallied more than 20 per cent and outperformed the US stock market.
The UK’s blue-chip index rose 0.8 per cent as global markets made an upbeat start to the year, adding to last year’s 21.5 per cent increase, its largest annual gain since 2009. It first broke through 9,000 points in July, after rebounding from sharp falls in the wake of “liberation day”.
The index has been buoyed by a strong rally in banking, mining and defence stocks, all of which are well represented in a London market seen as relatively cheap by international investors, in part due to a lack of the Big Tech companies that have powered Wall Street higher in recent years.