Market Commentary March 2021
01 April 2021
In March 2020 the Coronavirus pandemic took hold globally, the UK went into its first National Lockdown and the FTSE 100 suffered its second largest one-day crash in market history.
A year on, the FTSE 100 has risen 18.37% and has also increased 3.55% over the past month. The positive performance throughout March has come as the vaccine rollout continues at high speed and restrictions are starting to be eased across the country. As we move into summer there remains a cautious optimism that some sort of normality will return in the not too distant future.
For the month of March the top 5 FTSE 100 rising stocks were:
- BT Group 23.23%
- Kingfisher 21.66%
- Barclays 15.63%
- Aviva 10.72%
- Ashtead Group 10.60%
BT have been in the spotlight recently as the first national strike in over 30 years was threatened following disputes over compulsory redundancies and closure of sites. Despite BT freezing pay and the disputes with trade unions remaining unresolved, BT offered its frontline workers a bonus of £1,500 for working throughout the Pandemic. Although this is unlikely to stop the threat of any pending strike actions.
In addition to the strikes and bonus payment, BT saw a change of management as the Chairman announced plans to retire once a successor has been appointed and denied allegations of misalignment between the board and management over BT Group’s strategy.
For the month of March the top 5 FTSE 100 falling stocks were:
- London Stock Exchange Group -26.21%
- Rio Tinto -12.55%
- BHP Group -9.84%
- Antofagasta -7.69%
- Standard Life Aberdeen -7.67%
In March the London Stock Exchange group experienced their largest daily fall in more than 20 years. This happened after revealing the expenses to integrate Refinitiv were higher than anticipated. This caused the shares to drop 14% in a day from £94.47 to £81.24.
Over the month of March Sterling has remained fairly stable against the US Dollar and the Euro, down 1.10% and up 1.82% respectively.
| 31 March 2021 | 1 month | 6 months | 12 months | 24 months | 36 months | 48 months | 60 months | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTSE 100 | 6,713.63 | 3.55% | 14.45% | 18.37% | -7.77% | -4.86% | -8.32% | 8.72% |
| GBP/USD | 1.3779 | -1.10% | 6.68% | 10.96% | 5.74% | -1.70% | 9.79% | -4.06% |
| GBP/EUR | 1.1745 | 1.82% | 6.58% | 4.33% | 1.09% | 3.24% | -0.34% | -6.93% |
This newsletter is intended to provide a general review of certain topics and its purpose is to inform but NOT to recommend or support any specific investment or course of action.
Figures refer to the past and past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. You may not get back the full amount of your investment.
Sources of information as at close of business 31 March 2021:
FTSE 100: www.investing.com
Currency: www.investing.com
FTSE 100 Risers & Fallers: https://investing.thisismoney.co.uk/market-data/risers-fallers/
Inflation & Interest rates: www.bankofengland.co.uk
