FTSE 100 Surges Past 10,000 Intraday as Europe Hits Records

On Jan. 2, 2026 the FTSE 100 climbed above the 10,000 level for the first time in intraday trading, reaching an early peak of 10,046.25 before settling back and finishing the day at 9,951.14, up 19.76 points or 0.2 percent. The intraday break was the latest milestone after a very strong 2025 in which the index gained almost 22 percent, its best calendar performance since 2009.

The start‑of‑year surge in London came in step with record or near‑record moves across European equity markets. The broader Stoxx Europe 600 opened higher and the blue‑chip Euro Stoxx 50 touched a record level in early trade. Paris’s CAC 40 closed up about 0.6 percent and Germany’s DAX 40 finished the session roughly 0.2 percent higher, reflecting widespread risk‑on positioning among investors.

Sector leadership was concentrated in miners, resources and parts of the technology complex. Miners advanced on firmer commodity prices, and defence and resource stocks also contributed to the FTSE’s strength. Among individual movers, precious metals miner Fresnillo was one of the index’s top gainers, rising more than 5 percent in early trade, while a live market snapshot showed Intercontinental Hotels Group as the largest faller on the day in a volatile intraday listing.

Two structural factors helped lift the FTSE relative to peers last year. The index’s heavy weighting to internationally focused companies and resource exporters provided leverage to global growth and commodity strength, enabling the FTSE to outperform Europe’s Stoxx 600 and the US S&P 500 in 2025. By contrast, the domestically oriented FTSE 250 rose roughly 9 percent in 2025, underscoring a divergence between internationally and domestically exposed UK equities.

Despite the optimism, important economic indicators offered a more mixed picture. The final eurozone manufacturing purchasing managers’ index for December slipped to 48.8 from 49.6 in November, dipping into contraction territory and marking a nine‑month low. Traders were also positioning ahead of fresh S&P Global manufacturing PMIs for the UK, US and Europe that market participants expect to use as near‑real‑time gauges of activity. Currency markets showed modest reaction, with the pound trading around £1.345 against the dollar, about 0.1 percent weaker on the day.

The near‑term outlook will hinge on whether incoming macro data and central bank guidance support the risk appetite that lifted markets at the turn of the year. Elevated gains in 2025 leave valuations stretched in some sectors, making sentiment vulnerable to weaker activity readings or signs of sticky inflation that could alter the path for policy rates. Over a longer horizon, continued strength in AI‑related technologies and resource demand could sustain parts of the rally, but the gap between internationally oriented large caps and domestically focused midcaps signals a fragile breadth that investors and policymakers will be watching closely.