Shares & the stockmarket

  • 14 November 2025

    Daily market update: gilt yields, DFS, Landsec, PPHE Hotel Group

    Wall Street gloom has spread across European and Asian markets like a contagious disease.

    Markets are down across the board as investors fret about cracks in the narrative that’s driven the mother of all tech rallies over the past few years. Investors are worried about rich equity valuations and how billions of dollars are being spent on AI just at...

    4 min read
    woman shopping for sofas
  • 14 November 2025

    AI, Disney and AMD: what happened on US markets this week

    US markets look set to end the week on the back foot as investors grow more sceptical of the AI boom. It represents a complete turnaround from the start of the week when hopes that the government shutdown would be resolved gave stocks a boost.

    By the time the Trump administration signed a bill to end the shutdown on 12 November, equity indices...

    5 min read
    Author
    Advanced Micro Devices
  • 13 November 2025

    Daily market update: Aviva, 3i Group, Burberry, Rolls-Royce

    The FTSE 100 was held back in its latest attempt to make the 10,000 summit by some shares trading ex-dividend and some poorly received corporate updates.

    This outweighed the tailwind provided by a weaker pound, which flatters the overseas earnings which dominate the index, and saw the FTSE 100 dip slightly in early trading on Thursday. Sterling...

    5 min read
    Author
    burberry store
  • 12 November 2025

    What a share price jump or slump tells you about a CEO hire

    The announcement of a new chief executive can have a pronounced impact on a company’s share price, good or bad. Guinness owner Diageo hiring former Tesco head Dave Lewis as its chief executive drove its share price up 5.2% on the day of the announcement.

    That might not sound out of the ordinary until you realise the change in the company’s market...

    6 min read
    reflection of a graph in a woman's glasses
  • 12 November 2025

    Daily market update: SoftBank sells Nvidia stake, SSE, Taylor Wimpey

    The FTSE 100 continued to tick towards the 10,000 mark as it eked out some modest gains to trade at fresh all-time highs on Wednesday.

    UK stocks made progress despite some volatility in the AI space in the US and Asia overnight. SoftBank’s decision to sell its entire stake in Nvidia dragged the chip maker lower and also saw selling in the Japanese...

    4 min read
    Author
    engineer inspecting electrical pylon
  • 12 November 2025

    Are AI opportunities better outside the US?

    When AI comes up in market conversations, the US usually quickly follows. This is for good reason. It holds many of the heavyweights, including Nvidia, Microsoft, and Alphabet. But it is far from the only region that’s benefitted from the AI boost.

    On the other side of the globe, emerging markets have made their own market niches. These have...

    5 min read
    finger pointing at global financial data on screen
  • 11 November 2025

    Daily market update: Vodafone, SoftBank, Princes Group, 4imprint

    The FTSE 100 made new record highs on Tuesday, taking its cue from a strong rebound on Wall Street and the added tailwind of sterling weakness.

    Moves towards the end of the shutdown in Washington had primed US stocks for big gains at the market open, and the pound fell after weak UK jobs figures which increased the prospect of an interest rate cut...

    5 min read
    Author
    vodafone headquarters
  • 10 November 2025

    Daily market update: US government shutdown, FTSE 100, JTC

    Glimmers of hope that an end might be in sight to the longest running US government shutdown in history put markets in a positive mood.

    A vote in the Senate is an important first step but any agreement still needs to clear a vote in the House of Representatives along with several other hurdles. A key impact on the markets of the impasse, beyond the...

    2 min read
    Author
    usa capitol north side washington dc
  • 7 November 2025

    The path out of the pandemic

    Sunday 9 November 2025 marks the fifth anniversary of a defining moment in stock market history. Pfizer/ BioNTech’s announcement of the first effective covid-19 vaccine gave investors confidence that the world could recover from a major pandemic.

    News of the vaccine breathed new life into stock markets around the world, particularly in the UK...

    5 min read
    People wearing surgical masks in crowded street
  • 7 November 2025

    What to expect from Berkeley amid London housing push

    Investors will hope for few surprises when Berkeley Group reveals first half results on 10 December given the UK housebuilder reaffirmed full-year profit guidance as recently as 5 September.

    Berkeley expects to deliver £450 million of pre-tax profit for the year to 30 April 2026 after reporting stable trading in the current year to date.

    Pre-tax...

    2 min read
    Shares magazine
    High rise flats under construction
  • 7 November 2025

    Daily market update: Rightmove, Tesla, IAG

    A negative reaction to two big name corporate results in the UK weighed on the FTSE 100, dragging it down 0.3% to 9,707 as investors worried if more companies would follow suit with gloomier outlooks.

    British Airways’ owner IAG reported softer US economy leisure trading while property portal Rightmove shocked the market with news that investments...

    4 min read
    Author
    taxi with rightmove ads
  • 6 November 2025

    Using passive funds to invest in bonds

    It is easier than you might think to invest in bonds via passive investment products such as tracker funds and ETFs (exchange-traded funds).

    Bonds are popular with individuals looking to generate income. They are lower-risk investments and can either be bought as individual products or bundled together inside funds.

    There are a few reasons why...

    5 min read
    Author
    Bond market Stock Exchange screen
  • 6 November 2025

    Why we’ve taken two UK names off our Favourite funds list

    Following a review of our UK active fund selections, we’ve decided to remove both the BlackRock UK Special Situations and BlackRock UK Income funds to consolidate our number of UK picks and to ensure we’re only selecting our highest conviction ideas.

    We’ve removed the BlackRock UK Special Situations fund due to a decline in our conviction in the...

    2 min read
    Favourite-Funds-September-24.jpg
  • 6 November 2025

    Daily market update: Diageo, BT, Auto Trader, Hikma, Smith & Nephew

    The FTSE 100 slipped on a negative reaction to corporate updates despite gains in Asia and the US overnight.

    Could there be fireworks a day late at the Bank of England? The interest rate decision is hard to call ahead of today’s vote, with several observers expecting a rate cut even if the market is pricing in no change.

    Recent signs of easing...

    5 min read
    Author
    father and daughter sat inside a car with someone handing them car keys
  • 5 November 2025

    Why a famous investor is betting against Nvidia and Palantir

    The investor who inspired The Big Short film in 2015 has hit the headlines after betting that tech stocks Nvidia and Palantir will fall in value. Hedge fund trader Michael Burry has bought financial products called ‘put options’ on these stocks and will profit if they decline in value.

    The Big Short focused on traders who made millions from...

    5 min read
    Author
    Palantir office
  • 5 November 2025

    Daily market update: Novo Nordisk, Barratt Redrow, Wetherspoon

    Market jitters around US tech stocks might have put investors on the edge of their seats, but yesterday’s sell-off wasn’t severe enough to cause widespread panic.

    A 2% decline in the Nasdaq index and a 10.7% jump in the Vix fear gauge were like a sharp bout of turbulence on a flight – unpleasant, but just for a moment. The fact a major sell-off...

    5 min read
    Author
    new housing development area uk
  • 4 November 2025

    Daily market update: Palantir, Tesla, BP, Domino’s Pizza, Primark

    Rachel Reeves’ unusual stance of giving a big speech on the eve of the Budget has left investors with more questions than answers, and done nothing to remove uncertainty around taxes.

    The bond market would be happy if the chancellor raises taxes as it would help to improve public finances and make the UK less risky from an investment perspective...

    6 min read
    shoppers with primark bags on a train
  • 3 November 2025

    Daily market update: FTSE 100, Berkshire Hathaway, Ryanair

    The FTSE 100 got off to a solid start with oil helping to grease the wheels of the index.

    The decision by producers’ cartel OPEC+ to pause further output hikes at the start of next year, amid concerns about a glut of supply, helped give oil prices a lift and, in turn, boosted UK market heavyweights BP and Shell.

    Prudential was among the top FTSE...

    3 min read
    Author
    ryanair plane at airport during sunset
  • 31 October 2025

    US stocks shrug off Fed uncertainty to make progress, Amazon stands out

    Overall, it was a positive week for most US indices despite the latest decision from the Federal Reserve injecting a dose of uncertainty into the markets.

    The one big exception to a story of steady progress for stocks across the Atlantic was the small- and mid-cap Russell 2000 which retreated amid some evidence of pressure on the US economy.

    Fed...

    5 min read
    Author
    us flags on building in financial district in new york
  • 31 October 2025

    Daily market update: FTSE 100, Fresnillo, Amazon, Apple

    Weakness on Wall Street haunted European markets on the morning of Halloween and saw the FTSE 100 retreat from its latest record high.

    The main culprit was uncertainty about the future policy of the Federal Reserve after its chair Jerome Powell suggested a cut in December, to follow this week’s, was not a foregone conclusion.

    The negative response...

    3 min read
    Author
    building with amazon web services logo