Never confuse a stock market index with a symbol of national economic health. The truth of that old piece of wisdom was demonstrated on Thursday as the FTSE 100 went on a rip-roaring run – up 104 points, or 1.2%, to a new closing high of 8,727 – while the Bank of England cut interest rates because the UK economy was flat on its back.
The point always to remember about the Footsie is that its constituents are an international crew, or at least they operate internationally. Goldman Sachs’ analysts calculated recently that, in aggregate, only 22% of the revenues of FTSE 100 companies were generated in the UK. North America, at 29%, and the Asia-Pacific region, at 23%, are more important. Think of the likes of index heavyweights AstraZeneca, BP, GSK and Shell: their UK revenue exposures are measured in low single-digit percentages.
