Astrazeneca was the leading pharmaceutical company in the United Kingdom as of March 7, 2024, with a market capitalization amounting to approximately 202.4 billion U.S. dollars. GlaxoSmithKline followed as the second largest pharma company in the country, with market capitalization of nearly 86.7 billion U.S. dollars. Examining the development of the FTSE 100 Index, which was launched in January 1984 with a base level of 1,000, increased by more than sevenfold to date. What is the FTSE 100 index? The Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 Index, commonly known as the "Footsie", is the most widely recognized stock market index in the United Kingdom. It is made up of the 100 largest blue-chip companies on the London Stock Exchange. Companies from various sectors, such as healthcare, consumer goods, and energy, are included in the index, as are leading banks of the United Kingdom, such as HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group, and Barclays. Moreover, it can be seen as a reflection of the investment climate in the United Kingdom. What is not included in the FTSE 100 Index? Most notably, the FTSE 100 Index, like most indices, is not adjusted for inflation. While inflation in the United Kingdom has gone down dramatically since 2023, it might be useful to adjust the historic figures on the index when comparing historic data to current levels. This is especially important when the index seems to have increased by a few percentage points because inflation may have increased at a faster rate than stock prices.

The main stock market index in the United Kingdom (GB100) increased 479 points or 5.86% since the beginning of 2025, according to trading on a contract for difference (CFD) that tracks this benchmark index from United Kingdom. United Kingdom Stock Market Index (GB100) - values, historical data, forecasts and news - updated on March of 2025.

As of January 29, 2025, the FTSE index stood at 8,557.81 points - well above its average value of around 7,500 points in the past few years.On the 12th of March 2020, amid the escalating crisis surrounding the coronavirus and fears of a global recession, the FTSE 100 suffered the second largest one day crash in its history and the biggest since the 1987 market crash. On the 23rd of March, the FTSE index saw its lowest value this year to date at 4,993.89 but has since began a tentative recovery. With the continuation of the pandemic, the FTSE 100 index was making a tentative recovery between late March 2020 and early June 2020. Since then the FSTE 100 index had plateaued towards the end of July, before starting a tentative upward trend in November. FTSE 100 The Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 Index, otherwise known as the FTSE 100 Index is a share index of the 100 largest companies trading on the London Stock Exchange in terms of market capitalization. At the end of March 2024, the largest company trading on the LSE was Shell. The largest ever initial public offering (IPO) on the LSE was Glencore International plc. European stock exchanges While nearly every country in Europe has a stock exchange, only five are considered major, and have a market capital of over one trillion U.S dollars. European stock exchanges make up two of the top ten major stock markets in the world. Europe’s biggest stock exchange is the Euronext which combines seven markets based in Belgium, France, England, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, and Portugal.

This statistic presents the nationalities of CEOs who work at FTSE 100 companies in the United Kingdom as of 2018. Over half of FTSE 100 CEO's are British, with the next most common nationality being American, with nine CEOs in 2018. In total there were 21 different nationalities represented at the top-level of the UK's 100 biggest companies, with 11 of these being European countries.

Smiths Group is considering moving its listing to the US as part of a strategic break-up plan after pressure from activist hedge fund Engine Capital.

While the global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic caused all major stock market indices to fall sharply in March 2020, both the extent of the decline at this time, and the shape of the subsequent recovery, have varied greatly. For example, on March 15, 2020, major European markets and traditional stocks in the United States had shed around 40 percent of their value compared to January 5, 2020. However, Asian markets and the NASDAQ Composite Index only shed around 20 to 25 percent of their value. A similar story can be seen with the post-coronavirus recovery. As of November 14, 2021 the NASDAQ composite index value was around 65 percent higher than in January 2020, while most other markets were only between 20 and 40 percent higher.

Why did the NASDAQ recover the quickest?

Based in New York City, the NASDAQ is famously considered a proxy for the technology industry as many of the world’s largest technology industries choose to list there. And it just so happens that technology was the sector to perform the best during the coronavirus pandemic. Accordingly, many of the largest companies who benefitted the most from the pandemic such as Amazon, PayPal and Netflix, are listed on the NADSAQ, helping it to recover the fastest of the major stock exchanges worldwide.

Which markets suffered the most?

The energy sector was the worst hit by the global COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, oil companies share prices suffered large declines over 2020 as demand for oil plummeted while workers found themselves no longer needing to commute, and the tourism industry ground to a halt. In addition, overall share prices in two major stock exchanges – the London Stock Exchange (as represented by the FTSE 100 index) and Hong Kong (as represented by the Hang Seng index) – have notably recovered slower than other major exchanges. However, in both these, the underlying issue behind the slower recovery likely has more to do with political events unrelated to the coronavirus than it does with the pandemic – namely Brexit and general political unrest, respectively.

In the first quarter of 2020, global stock indices posted substantial losses that were triggered by the outbreak of COVID-19. The period from March 6 to 18 was particularly dramatic, with several stock indices losing more than 20 percent of their value.

Worldwide panic hits markets From the United States to the United Kingdom, stock market indices suffered steep falls as the coronavirus pandemic created economic uncertainty. The Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 are two indices that track company performance in the United States, and both lost value as lockdowns were introduced in the country. European markets also recorded significant slumps, which triggered panic selling among investors. The FTSE 100 – the leading share index of companies in the UK – plunged by as much as 21 percent in the opening weeks of March 2020.

Is it time to invest in tech stocks? The S&P 500 is regarded as the best representation of the U.S. economy because it includes more companies from the leading industries. However, helped in no small part by its focus on tech companies, the Nasdaq 100 has risen in popularity and seen remarkable growth in recent years. Global demand for digital technologies has increased further due to the coronavirus, with remote working and online shopping becoming part of the new normal. As a result, more investors are likely to switch to the tech stocks listed on the Nasdaq 100.

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The expense ratio of passive mutual funds is expected to fall more quickly than for active funds between 2010 and 2015. While the former is predicted to fall by around two thirds between 2010 and 2025, the latter is only expected to fall by one third. Active mutual funds are funds of pooled money that is invested by a fund manager, who actively researches new investment opportunities and amends the fund's portfolio accordingly. This contrasts to passive funds, where the fund's portfolio is (usually) determined by an external stock market index such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average or the FTSE 100. The less hand-on nature of passive funds means they are cheaper to operate, hence the consistently lower expense ratio.

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is the largest stock exchange in the world, with an equity market capitalization of just below 32 trillion U.S. dollars as of January 2025. The following three exchanges were the NASDAQ, Shanghai Stock Exchange, and the Japan Exchange Group. What is a stock exchange? A stock exchange is a marketplace where stockbrokers, traders, buyers, and sellers can trade in equities products. The largest exchanges have thousands of listed companies. These companies sell shares of their business, giving the general public the opportunity to invest in them. The oldest stock exchange worldwide is the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, founded in the late sixteenth century. Other functions of a stock exchange Since these are publicly traded companies, every firm listed on a stock exchange has had an initial public offering (IPO). The largest IPOs can raise billions of dollars in equity for the firm involved. Related to stock exchanges are derivatives exchanges, where stock options, futures contracts, and other derivatives can be traded.

While passive funds only constituted 20 percent of the mutual fund market in the the United States in 2010, it is projected that over half of all U.S. mutual funds will be passive by 2025. Active mutual funds are funds of pooled money that is invested by a fund manager, who actively researches new investment opportunities and amends the fund's portfolio accordingly. This contrasts to passive funds, where the fund's portfolio is (usually) determined by an external stock market index such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average or the FTSE 100.

While passively-managed index funds only constituted 19 percent of the total assets managed by investment companies in the the United States in 2010, this share had increased to 48 percent by 2023. Active mutual funds are funds of pooled money managed by a fund manager, who actively researches new investment opportunities and amends the fund's portfolio accordingly. This contrasts to passive funds, where the fund's portfolio is (usually) determined by an external stock market index such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average or the FTSE 100.

The total market capitalization of all companies trading on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) has taken a large hit during the early months of 2020, due mostly part to a mass sell-off of shares caused by the fears surrounding the global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Between December 2019 and March 2020, the total value of market capitalization decreased by more than 900 billion British pounds (GBP). The overall number of companies currently trading has also fallen, although the number of daily trades spiked in March 2020. As of December 2024, the total market value of all companies trading on the London Stock Exchange stood at over 3.52 trillion British pounds. European stock exchanges While almost every country has a stock Exchange, in Europe only 5 exchanges are considered major, with total market capital amounting to over one trillion euros. The London Stock Exchange is the second largest in Europe and ninth largest worldwide. As of December 2024, Europe’s largest stock exchange, Euronext had a total market capital of listed companies valued at approximately 6.44 trillion U.S. dollars.

As of September 2024, British multinational bank HSBC is the leading finance company listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) with a total market capitalization of over 122 billion British pounds. Second in the ranking was Spanish Banco Santander, with a market cap of nearly 60 billion U.S. dollars.

While passive funds only accounted for two trillion U.S. dollars of total assets held by mutual funds in the United States in 2010, this figure will have multiplied by 2025. Active mutual funds are funds of pooled money that is invested by a fund manager, who actively researches new investment opportunities and amends the fund's portfolio accordingly. This contrasts to passive funds, where the fund's portfolio is (usually) determined by an external stock market index such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average or the FTSE 100.

Market risk premiums (MRP) measure the expected return on investment an investor looks to make. For potential investors looking to add to their portfolio, the perfect scenario for a risk-based investment would be a high rate of return with as small a risk as possible. There are three main concepts to MRP’s, including required market risk premiums, historical market risk premiums and expected market risk premiums.

United Kingdom shows little return for risk

Europe wide, Finland had one of the lowest MRP alongside Poland and Germany. Ukraine had average risk premiums of 22.7 percent in 2023. Having a lower market risk premium may seem bad, but for countries such as the UK and Germany where rates have been consistent for several years, it is because the market is stable as an environment for investment.

Risk free rates

Risk free rates are closely associated to market risk premiums and measure the rate of return on an investment with no risk. As there is no risk associated, the rate of return is lower than that of an MRP. Average risk free rates across Europe are relatively low.

Shell had the highest annual revenue of all companies based in the United Kingdom in 2024, at approximately 289.7 billion U.S. dollars. BP had the second-highest annual revenue at 202.8 billion dollars, followed by HSBC Holdings, which had a revenue of 144.9 billion U.S. dollars. In terms of global employee numbers, however, Compass Group had the highest number among UK-based businesses, at approximately half a million in 2024, followed by Tesco at 345,000 and HSBC at almost 214,000. Big Oil, a banking giant, and Britain's top supermarket chain The two companies listed as having the most revenue in the UK this year also two of the biggest oil and gas companies in the world, alongside Chevron, Eni, ExxonMobil, and TotalEnergies. After a huge surge in energy prices in 2022, these companies saw their profits recede slightly in 2023, but clearly remain in strong financial positions. HSBC Holdings, meanwhile, was the largest bank in Europe in terms of market capitalization, and was estimated to have the third-highest number of UK-based customers in 2023. The company with the fourth-highest revenue in this year, Tesco has by some distance the largest grocery-market share in Great Britain, a position it has maintained despite growing competition from discounters like Lidl and Aldi. UK economy health check In the first two quarters of 2024, the UK economy grew by 0.7 percent, and 0.6 percent, emerging from a brief recession at the end of 2023. Consumer Price inflation, which reached a peak of 11.1 percent in October 2022, fell below two percent in September 2024, for the first time since April 2021, potentially leading to further interest rate cuts. Despite these generally positive signs, business confidence in the UK in September 2024 was lower than at any point since early 2021. Company insolvencies in England and Wales have also reached levels not seen since the global financial crisis in the late 2000s. This generally mixed picture will be influenced by the next government budget set for the end of October 2024, which may see certain taxes increase due to the UK's tricky fiscal situation.

The risk-free rate is a theoretical rate of return of an investment with zero risk of financial loss. This rate represents the minimum interest an investor would expect from a risk-free investment over a period of time. It is important to remember that the risk-free rate is only theoretical as all investments carry even the smallest of risks. Across European countries, average risk-free rates differed quite significantly.

United Kingdom is low risk and low reward

When average risk-free rates on a theoretical investment with no risk is high, like seen in Turkey and Ukraine, the opportunity for high reward investments must seem tempting. But with high rewards come higher risks. Countries such as the UK and Germany has consistently shown low risk-free rates due to their investment markets’ relative stability.

Market risk premiums

Market risk premiums (MRP) are a measure that is closely associated with average risk-free rates. MRPs are a measurement of the expected return on investment an investor looks to make. For potential investors looking to add to their portfolio, the perfect scenario for a risk-based investment would be a high rate of return with as small a risk as possible. There are three main concepts to MRPs, including required market risk premiums, historical market risk premiums and expected market risk premiums. Like average risk-free rates, MRPs vary quite widely across Europe.

Zum Ende des Jahres 2024 schloss der Dow-Jones-Index bei einem Stand von 42.544,22 Punkten*. Damit beendete der Index das Jahr bei einem Stand, der mehr als 4.850 Punkte über dem am Ende des Vorjahres lag. Über den Dow-Jones-Index Der Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), kurz Dow Jones, stellt nach dem Dow Jones Transportation Average den ältesten noch existierenden Aktienindex der USA dar. Zugleich ist der DJIA das weltweit bekannteste wie auch meistbeachtete Börsenbarometer. Gründer und Namensgeber des Dow Jones waren Charles Henry Dow sowie Edward David Jones, die Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts das Wall Street Journal herausgaben. Der Dow Jones wurde 1896 erstmals veröffentlicht und umfasste damals nur die zwölf wichtigsten Unternehmen. Ab 1916 repräsentierte das Barometer 20 US-Industriewerte, seit 1928 sind es 30 – inzwischen auch bedeutende Aktien anderer Branchen.Im Gegensatz zum DAX, bei dem es sich um einen Performance-Index handelt, wird der Dow Jones als reiner Kursindex berechnet. Der Indexstand des DJIA wird also ausschließlich auf Grund der Aktienkurse ermittelt, Dividendenzahlungen und Kapitalabschläge werden nicht berücksichtigt. Internationale Leitindizes Leitindizes repräsentieren die jeweils wichtigsten Aktienwerte eines Landes oder sonstigen Bezugsbereiches. Die Bedeutung, die der Dow Jones für den US-amerikanischen Aktienmarkt oder der DAX hierzulande hat, kann für den britischen Börsenmarkt dem FTSE 100 Index zugeschrieben werden. Der FTSE 100 zeichnet die zusammengefasste Kursentwicklung der 100 größten und umsatzstärksten Unternehmen, die an der London Stock Exchange gelistet sind, nach.Als Leitindex des japanischen Börsenmarkts gilt der Nikkei-Index, welcher die Wertentwicklung der 225 bedeutendsten an der Tokioter Börse notierten Aktien abbildet.Die 50 größten börsennotierten Unternehmen aus den Ländern der Euro-Zone werden im EURO-STOXX-Index zusammengefasst. Der Index gilt daher als ein wichtiger Indikator für die Entwicklung des europäischen Aktienmarktes.

Compass Group had by far the highest number of global employees among companies based in the United Kingdom as of 2024, at approximately 500,000 employees. Tesco had the second-highest number of employees at 345,000, followed by HSBC Holdings which had 213,978 employees. As of the same year, HSBC Holdings had an annual revenue of 144.9 billion U.S. dollars, the third-highest among UK-based companies. The oil and gas giant Shell had the highest annual revenue at 289.7 billion dollars, ahead of BP at 202.8 billion dollars. How many businesses are there in the UK? In 2024, there were approximately 5.5 million business enterprises in the UK, down from a peak of 5.98 million in 2020. Although there were just 1,930 large firms that employed 1,000 people or more, these firms employed more than a quarter of the UK's private sector workforce, and made a combined turnover of approximately 1.69 trillion British pounds. As of this year, the construction industry had the highest number of enterprises by sector, at over 870,000. The sector with the most workers was that of wholesale and retail, which collectively employed just under 4.9 million people in 2024, and also had the highest turnover compared to other sectors, at over 1.8 trillion pounds. Current UK economic climate In some ways, the UK economy is in a reasonably good position in 2024. There was moderate economic growth in the first half of the year, inflation has returned to more usual levels, and unemployment has remained low. According to the business confidence index, however, the current sentiment among businesses in September 2024 was lower than it has been since early 2021. Furthermore, the number of company insolvencies in England and Wales has steadily been increasing, with 25,000 taking place in 2023, and 22,000 in 2022, compared with just 14,000 in 2021. When SME leaders were asked in 2023, what the main obstacles to running their business were, 36 percent said increasing costs. The precarious state of the UK's government finances, and potential tax rises in the next budget, are also likely feeding into this pessimistic mood.