The week in review

07 January 2022 - The FTSE 100 slumped on Thursday (6 January) as investors reacted to speculation that the US Federal Reserve was considering an imminent rate rise, which would have a potentially global knock-on effect.

17 December 2021 - The FTSE 100 jumped on Thursday (16 December) as the Bank of England announced it was hiking the bank rate from 0.1% to 0.25%.

10 December 2021 - The FTSE 100 finished lower for the second day running on Thursday (9 December) with investor sentiment knocked by the Government’s decision to introduce new coronavirus restrictions.

03 December 2021 - The FTSE 100 fell on Thursday as markets continued their whipsaw response to the emerging Omicron variant of coronavirus.

26 November 2021 - The FTSE 100 climbed for the fourth day in a row with a weaker pound boosting large dollar-earning consumer stocks such as Diageo plc (DGE) and Unilever plc (ULVR).

19 November 2021 - The FTSE 100 fell in trading on Thursday as the oil price continued its slump, affecting major constituents of the index.

12 November 2021 - The FTSE 100 index of stocks rose in trading on Thursday as sluggish UK GDP numbers led to falls in pound sterling.

05 November 2021 - The FTSE 100 closed higher on Thursday (4 November) after the Bank of England voted to keep rates on hold.

29 October 2021 - London-listed oil giants acted as a drag on the FTSE 100 on Thursday (28 October) after a sharp fall in the price of Brent oil.

15 October 2021 - The FTSE 100 gained on Thursday (14 October) as G7 finance ministers committed to working together to end supply chain issues.

22 October 2021 - The FTSE 100 index of companies was down slightly on Thursday (21 October) on the back of interest rate worries in markets.

08 October 2021 - The FTSE 100 index of companies gained on Thursday (7 October) despite inflation warning from the Bank of England’s new economist Huw Pill.

01 October 2021 - The FTSE 100 lost ground on Thursday (30 September) as investors mull over a potential rate rise in the near future.

24 September 2021 - The FTSE 100 index was down fractionally on Thursday (23 September) on the back of hawkish comments from the Bank of England, which sees inflation peaking above 4% this year, heightening chances of monetary policy action.

17 September 2021 - The FTSE 100 index of stocks was up marginally on Thursday (16 September) thanks to soaring travel stocks after Ryanair upgraded its growth target for passengers.

10 September 2021 - The FTSE 100 index of stocks fell 1% on Thursday (9 September) on the back of renewed fears of slowing economic growth in the face of supply issues and the delta variant of COVID.

03 September 2021 - The FTSE 100 rose cautiously on Thursday (2 September) in what was a quiet day for European indices.

27 August 2021 - The FTSE 100 edged lower on Thursday (26 August) as investors trod carefully ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s annual symposium in Jackson Hole on Friday (27 August).

20 August 2021 - The FTSE 100 index was sent lower on Thursday (19 August) amid a wider global sell off of stocks.

13 August 2021 - The FTSE 100 was dragged into the red on Thursday (12 August) after London-listed miners Rio Tinto Limited (RIO) and Evraz plc (EVR) went ex-dividend, causing their shares to nosedive 7.6% and 7.1%, respectively.

06 August 2021 - The FTSE 100 was off by a fractional 0.048% on Thursday as investors absorbed the latest interest rate decision from the Bank of England. Sterling rose 0.4% on the news that the BoE would hold rates at 0.1% for now.

30 July 2021 - The FTSE 100 soared higher on Thursday (29 July) following a number of strong earnings updates and dividend announcements from the likes of Royal Dutch Shell plc (RDSA) and Anglo American plc (AAL).

23 July 2021 - The FTSE 100 was down slightly on Thursday (22 July), a day after its best day since February, dragged lower by Unilever (ULVR).

16 July 2021 - The FTSE 100 fell sharply on Thursday (15 July), with the falling price of brent crude hitting oil stocks.

09 July 2021 - The FTSE 100 was down on Thursday (08 July) on the back of combined covid and inflation fears.

02 July 2021 - The FTSE 100 made strong gains on Thursday (1 July) as the Bank of England governor calmed fears of persistent inflation.

18 June 2021 - The FTSE 100 traded down on Thursday (17 June) as investors digested US Federal Reserve announcements around interest rates.

11 June 2021 - The FTSE 100 traded flat on Thursday (10 June) as investors chewed over higher-than-expected US inflation data.

04 June 2021 - The FTSE 100 finished the day down on Thursday (3 June) as travel firms faced bad news from changes to the UK Government Covid travel green list.

28 May 2021 - The FTSE 100 dipped into the red on Thursday (27 May) following a largely uneventful day for major UK shares.

21 May 2021 - The FTSE 100 rose 1% to 7,019.79 on Thursday (20 May) as investors were heartened by an improving economic picture in Europe and the US.

14 May 2021 - The FTSE 100 closed lower for the third time this week on Thursday (13 May) as fears over rising inflation continue to spook investors.

07 May 2021 - The FTSE 100 leapt higher on Thursday (6 May) as the Bank of England (BoE) upgraded its forecasts for the UK economy (see Economic Update).

30 April 2021 - The FTSE 100 was flat on Thursday (29 April) despite briefly reaching above 7,000 again - the second time in a fortnight.

23 April 2021 - The FTSE 100 hopped higher on Thursday (22 April), boosted by industrial and consumer stocks.

16 April 2021 - The FTSE 100’s revival gathered pace on Thursday (15 April) as the index returned to pre-pandemic levels and ended the day within a whisker of 7,000.

09 April 2021 - FTSE 100 hits 13-month high on recovery hopes

01 April 2021 - Better than expected economic data (see Economic Update) boosted the pound on Wednesday (31 March), which acted as a drag on the FTSE 100.

26 March 2021 - The energy stock heavy FTSE 100 was dragged down by a steep fall in the price of oil on Thursday (25 March).

19 March 2021 - Both the FTSE 100 and 250 were relatively flat on Thursday, posting small gains as the Bank of England announced it was holding interest rates at 0.1%.

12 March 2021 - Both the FTSE 100 and 250 rose in trading on Thursday as investors continued a markets revival after the US House of Representatives agreed a huge $1.9 trillion stimulus package for the world’s largest economy.

05 March 2021 - Expectations of more falls in US markets led the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 lower on Thursday (4 March).

26 February 2021 - Plunging US share prices dragged the FTSE 100 into the red following a relatively strong start for the UK’s blue-chip index on Thursday (25 February)

19 February 2021 - Worse-than-expected US jobs data caused the FTSE 100 to slide on Thursday (18 February).

12 February 2021 - The FTSE 100 ended the day flat on Thursday (11 February), with some experts blaming post-Brexit trade friction with the European Union for the lacklustre performance of British shares.

05 February 2021 - Soaring sterling acts as a drag on FTSE 100

28 January 2021 - US market volatility makes UK investors nervous

22 January 2021 - The FTSE 100 was down slightly on Thursday as Joe Biden’s term in office as US President got underway.

15 January 2021 - The FTSE 100 took off on Thursday (14 January) after reports that the Government was planning to ramp up its coronavirus vaccination programme.

08 January 2021 - In the wake of political violence in the US Capitol building in Washington DC we saw the FTSE 100 tread water on Thursday (7 January).

18 December 2020 - The FTSE 100 was held back by a stronger pound on Thursday (17 December) as hopes of a Brexit deal grew.

11 December 2020 - The FTSE 100 closed higher on Thursday (10 December) after the UK and EU agreed to extend Brexit talks until Sunday.

04 December 2020 - Both FTSE 100 and 250 finished Thursday up as renewed hopes of a Brexit deal sent the pound soaring against the US dollar – reaching a high of $1.349 late on.

27 November 2020 - Both the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 continue to tread water as gloomy economic forecasts are published and doubts cast over the Oxford University vaccine.

20 November 2020 - European shares slumped on Thursday (19 November) after the International Monetary Fund warned that the global economic recovery was showing signs of losing momentum.

13 November 2020 - After a week-long rally the FTSE 100 index of stocks drifted on Thursday, down some 0.7% at 6338.94.

06 November 2020 - Fresh economic stimulus from the Bank of England (see Economic Update below) helped UK shares end the day in positive territory on Thursday (5 November).

30 October 2020 - Growing fears over rising coronavirus infections caused the FTSE 100 to lose ground for the fourth consecutive day on Thursday (29 October). London’s blue-chip index edged 0.02% lower to 5,581.75.

23 October 2020 - UK stocks inched higher on Thursday (22 October) after Chancellor Rishi Sunak unveiled a multi-billion pound support package for coronavirus-hit firms.

16 October 2020 - A spate of new lockdown restrictions in Europe spooked investors on Thursday (15 October).

09 October 2020 - Investors were encouraged by reports that the US was preparing a fresh stimulus package to ward off the economic damage caused by coronavirus on Thursday (8 October).

02 October 2020 - Reports of progress in the Brexit negotiations between the UK and European Union supported share prices on Thursday (1 October). The FTSE 100 closed 0.23% higher at 5879.45.

25 September 2020 - Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s plan to save millions of jobs (more below) from the coronavirus fallout failed to haul UK stocks out of the red on Thursday (24 September). The FTSE 100 ended the day down 1.3% at 5,822.78.

18 September 2020 - The UK’s leading stock market index ended Thursday (17 September) in the red as the Bank of England held interest rates and warned on an “unusually uncertain” outlook for the economy.

11 September 2020 - The FTSE 100 ended the day down by the tiniest of margins on Thursday (10 September) as tensions erupted in the Brexit trade deal talks (see below for more).

04 September 2020 - A sell-off on Wall Street dragged European indices deep into negative territory on Thursday afternoon (3 September).

28 August 2020 - The FTSE 100 dipped 0.75% lower to 5,999.99 on Thursday (27 August) in what was a disappointing day for European markets.

21 August 2020 - The US Federal Reserve’s gloomy prediction of a slow economic recovery from coronavirus weighed heavily on global stocks on Thursday (20 August).

14 August 2020 - he FTSE 100 dropped 1.5% to 6,185.62 on Thursday (13 August) as investor profit taking put an end to the blue-chip index’s recent rally.

07 August 2020 - The FTSE 100 plunged by 1.27% to 6,026.94 on Thursday (6 August) after the Bank of England (BoE) held interest rates and warned the economic recovery from coronavirus might take another 18 months.

31 July 2020 - Global stocks plunged on Thursday (30 July) following news that the US and German economies shrank 9.5% and 10.1%, respectively, on a quarterly basis between April and June.

24 July 2020 - The FTSE 100 clung onto its earlier gains on Thursday (23 July) despite escalating tension between the US and China, the world’s only superpowers.

17 July 2020 - London stocks slipped on Thursday (16 July) following bleak data revealing how 649,000 UK workers had lost their jobs during the coronavirus.

10 July 2020 - The FTSE 100 plunged sharply on Thursday (9 July) following news that the number of global coronavirus cases had broken through 12 million and were still rising.

03 July 2020 - The FTSE 100 raced higher on Thursday (2 July) following reports of a potential new vaccine for the coronavirus.

26 June 2020 - The FTSE 100 recovered from early lows on Thursday (25 June) as investors seemed to shrug off a sharp increase in Coronavirus infections in the US.

19 June 2020 - The FTSE 100 ended Thursday (18 June) down despite fresh stimulus from the Bank of England, which increased its bond-buying programme by £100 billion.

12 June 2020 - The FTSE 100 plunged 3.99% to 6,076.70 on Thursday (11 June) on the back of investor fears of slower-than-hoped-for economic recovery data emanating from the US Federal Reserve.

05 June 2020 - The FTSE 100 dipped 0.64% to 6,341.44 on Thursday (4 June) as investors took their feet off the gas following three days of consecutive gains for the UK’s blue-chip index.

29 May 2020 - The FTSE 100 finished Thursday (28 May) strongly as major European countries signalled further easing to their lockdown measures.

22 May 2020 - The FTSE 100 ended Thursday (21 May) in the red following fresh data showing a severe drop in business activity in May

15 May 2020 - The FTSE 100 plunge into the red on Thursday (14 May) after Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey warned that the UK’s economy could suffer long-term damage from the coronavirus shutdown.

07 May 2020 - The FTSE 100 held strong on Wednesday (6 May) despite dismal data showing construction output suffered its biggest ever slump in April.

24 April 2020 - Investors flocked to housebuilders and carmakers on Thursday (23 April) after many of them revealed plans to return to work following the coronavirus shutdown.

01 May 2020 - The FTSE 100 index of stocks finished 3.5% down at 5,901.21 points on Thursday. The index was sunk by the news that Royal Dutch Shell (RDSA), down 11.37% on the day, was slashing its dividend for the first time since the Second World War due to severe falloff in demand for oil, because of the coronavirus crisis.

17 April 2020 - A weaker pound helped push the largely dollar earning FTSE 100 into positive territory on Thursday (16 April) in what was a relatively buoyant day for European markets.

17 April 2020 - The FTSE 100 finished Thursday (9 April) strongly despite warnings that the UK economy could shrink by up to 25% in the second quarter of the year if the coronavirus lockdown persists.

03 April 2020 - A surge in the price of Brent Crude helped lift the FTSE 100 into the black on Thursday (2 April), with oil giants Royal Dutch Shell plc (RDSA) and BP plc (BP) among the day’s best performers.

27 March 2020 - The FTSE 100 rebounded from early losses on Thursday (26 March) despite the Bank of England (BoE) warning that the coronavirus could have a damaging long-term effect on the economy.

20 March 2020 - The FTSE 100 bounced back from a near decade low on Thursday (19 March) after the Bank of England slashed rates and pumped £200 billion of fresh quantitative easing into the financial system to protect the economy.

13 March 2020 - The FTSE 100 index of stocks suffered one of its worst ever days on Thursday losing 10.87% of its value as markets responded to the US travel ban on European countries.

06 March 2020 - The FTSE 100 suffered another painful day of losses on Thursday as worries about the coronavirus outbreak once again spooked markets.

28 February 2020 - Amid fears the coronavirus could have the same impact on the world economy as the financial crisis the FTSE 100 was on course for its worst weekly drop since the Eurozone debt crisis in 2011.

21 February 2020 - A mounting number of corporate warnings about the impact of China’s coronavirus outbreak put pressure on global equities.