FTSE 100 finally breaches 9,000

Well, the FTSE 100 index today traded at 9,000 for the first time. It looked like it was about to achieve the milestone in March and again last month but fell short each time. Now, a strong week for a number of top stocks finally got it over the line, peaking at 9,016.98 at the start of Tuesday's session.

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While it took the FTSE 100 seventeen months to make the leap from 8,000 to 9,000, it was a quick sprint compared to the almost eight years taken to get from 7,000 to 8,000, and the seventeen-year crawl from 6,000 to 7,000.

Source: TradingView. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.

It’s a quite remarkable feat given the numerous headwinds, chief among them constant tariff speculation. Then there’s inflation, interest rates, taxes, geopolitics and plenty of other things to worry about.  

Investors have shown incredible resolve this year, brushing off quite significant events and happy to buy the dips at an index level or stock level. Only three months ago, the FTSE 100 crashed to 7,545. It means the index has rallied almost 20% since the April low.

Since it’s closing low on 10 April, more than three-quarters of the FTSE 100 is up 10% or more, and almost half is up at least 20%. Only six companies have fallen since then.

Performance among the top 10 is even more impressive.

Source: ShareScope

“With a 9% capital return this year and a robust 4% dividend yield, UK equities are delivering real value,” says Ben Russon, co-head, UK Equities (Large Cap) at Martin Currie.

“The UK economy is on the brink of a consumer-driven revival. Record household savings, rising real wages, and widely anticipated rate cuts are fuelling optimism. Recent signals from the Bank of England suggest more aggressive moves to lower rates could be on the horizon, especially as job data softens. International investors are taking notice.”

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Despite the impressive gains, London’s blue-chip index only manages mid-table in terms of performance since the April low. However, it is the fourth-best performing major index in 2025 so far with a 10.2% return. Only Germany, Hong Kong and Brazil beat the FTSE 100.

It might have been better had it not been for some significant high-profile profit warnings from both WPP (LSE:WPP), which has now lost almost half its value in 2025, and Bunzl (LSE:BNZL), down 30%. Diageo (LSE:DGE) shares are down 25%, not helped by new US tariffs.

Source: ShareScope