People investment planning in Cheshire and Oswestry will likely have seen the FTSE 100 enjoy a strong start to the year.
Breaching record highs, the London Stock Market passed the 10,000 point-mark to cap off a highly positive 2025. The blue-chip index enjoyed its best 12 months for 16 years, and Goldman Sachs is predicting that the LSE could yet hit 10,400 points by the end of 2026.
Last year, the City outperformed both the US S&P and Europe’s STOXX 600. Global investors looked for alternatives to US equities after the introduction of new trade tariffs, finding a cheap alternative in British stocks. The evidence suggests that mature sectors including banking, mining and military are now firmly back en vogue. Oil, defence and aerospace stocks have seen their value rise, following the US military action in Venezuela. Related industries such as copper and iron ore are poised to benefit, as defence spending increases.
Analysts are anticipating a year of ongoing speculation, on everything from the future of AI to England’s prospects of bringing the World Cup home. Some investors may yet prefer to go for more dependable options. Amidst the global turbulence of recent months, and diversification away from the US dollar, gold enjoyed a strong rally in 2025.
The question remains how deep UK optimism is. One clue was provided by a recent Deloitte survey, which found that more company executives are looking to increase investment, following the November Budget. Elsewhere, there are growing expectations that the Bank of England will further ease monetary policy.
