One of the most compelling reasons for investing through a Junior ISA is to help provide your offspring with the necessary funds to leave university without the burden of onerous debts.If you invested the whole allowance of £9,000 every year from birth until your child reached 18 they would inherit a pot worth £229,000 based on an annual return of 4.5% and with charges of 0.75% factored in. Best

London Stocks finished down on Tuesday, despite rallies from Whitbread and HSBC, as Wall Street was in the red ahead of the Fed?s major interest rate decision this week.The FTSE 100 index closed down 2.90 points at 8,144.13. The FTSE 250 ended down 119.40 points, 0.6%, at 19,965.39, and the AIM All-Share closed down 2.59 points, 0.3%, at 760.74.The Cboe UK 100 ended down 0.1% at 813.44, the Cboe U

Equities in London made a bright start to trading, led by lender HSBC, as the recent bullish run continued.Trade was more cautious in mainland Europe, however, ahead of key eurozone data later.The FTSE 100 index rose 26.28 points, 0.3%, at 8,173.31. The FTSE 250 was up 51.07 points, 0.3%, at 20,135.86, and the AIM All-Share was up 1.36 points, 0.2%, at 764.69.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.4% at 817.04,

Stock prices in London were up heading into the afternoon on Monday, beating more cautious trade on mainland Europe, as investors shifted focus onto this week?s Federal Reserve interest rate decision in the US.The FTSE 100 index rose 40.94 points, 0.5%, at 8,180.77. It had climbed to 8,189.14, its best-ever level.?The blue-chip index continues to glow and sustain energy that we haven?t seen in the

Stocks in London rose to a record high on Monday morning, as market attention moves to the US Federal Reserve interest rate decision due on Wednesday.The FTSE 100 index rose 40.03 points, 0.5%, at 8,179.86. It had climbed to 8,185.59 shortly after the opening bell, its best-ever level.The FTSE 250 was up 42.62 points, 0.2%, at 19,866.78, and the AIM All-Share was up 2.45 points, 0.3%, at 757.73.Th

After almost closing at a new high in early April, the UK?s blue-chip FTSE 100 has finally made it into the ranks of indices hitting new all-time highs thanks to a 4.5% gain since the start of January.On 22 April the index reached its highest ever close and on 23 April it moved through its previous intra-day high.The UK clearly isn?t in the same league as the US, where the S&P 500 has notched up n

The persistently high interest rate environment means companies are under pressure to cut costs and jobs are an obvious target. While they can cut their workforce through redundancies or slash the wage bill through shorter or fewer shifts, others might already be operating with a skeleton crew and cannot pare back any further.It is against this scenario that higher wages are adding to companies? p

Every time anyone in the UK puts money into a pension, a deal is struck. The government adds tax relief to the contribution, and the quid pro quo is you have to lock that money away for retirement. Hence why you can only access a pension after the age of 55, rising to 57 from 2028.The idea is that if you?ve got your own funds to live on in retirement, you won?t fall back on the benefits system and

London?s FTSE 100 opened sharply lower on Tuesday, as US interest rate worries and geopolitical tensions continued to cast a dark cloud over equity markets.Only Mondi traded higher, with even packaging peer DS Smith falling despite agreeing to a takeover from International Paper, the latest twist in a takeover saga that also involved Mondi. Mondi is yet to respond to the development.The FTSE 100 i

At the centre of the current boom in generative AI (artificial intelligence) is chip maker Nvidia (NVDA:NASDAQ).It designs some of the fastest computer chips in the world which are needed to run data hungry LLMs (large language models) capable of understanding natural language.Readers may be familiar with Nvidia?s historical link to the gaming industry, but less familiar with the US giant?s connec

Stock prices in London were mostly in the green at the close on Wednesday, helped by economic data from the US amid ongoing discussions about the interest rate cut trajectory.The FTSE 100 index closed up 2.35 points at 7,937.44. The FTSE 250 ended up 39.75 points, 0.2%, at 19,753.64, and the AIM All-Share closed down 0.32 of a point at 742.08.The Cboe UK 100 ended down 0.1% at 793.01, the Cboe UK

Stocks in London were lower on Wednesday midday, as investor sentiment suffered with a persistently resilient US economy dampening expectations that US interest rates cuts will come sooner rather than later.The FTSE 100 index was down 30.55 points, 0.4%, at 7,904.54. The FTSE 250 was down 35.35 points, 0.2%, at 19,678.54, and the AIM All-Share was down 0.62 of a point, 0.1%, at 741.78.The Cboe UK

London?s FTSE 100 underperformed European peers on Wednesday morning, with wider sentiment taking a hit as investors re-think the Federal Reserve interest rate outlook in the face of robust US data.The FTSE 100 index opened down 37.00 points, 0.5%, at 7,898.09. The FTSE 250 was down 72.68 points, 0.4%, at 19,641.21, and the AIM All-Share was down 0.83 of a point, 0.1%, at 741.57.The Cboe UK 100 wa

Blue-chip stocks in London were boosted on Friday by a favourable Bank of England interest rate outlook, although mid-caps inched down and trade elsewhere was mixed as New York stocks were largely down.The FTSE 100 index climbed 48.37 points, 0.6%, at 7,930.92, its best closing level in over a year. The FTSE 250 slipped 16.99 points, 0.1%, at 19,724.32, and the AIM All-Share ended down 1.12 points

Record profits deliveredFY25 guidance reiteratedOverseas developments exciteShares in Next (NXT) rallied 5.4% to an all-time high of £89.66 on Thursday after the fashion and homeware retailer reported forecast-beating results for the year to January 2024 and reiterated its full year 2025 guidance.Investors? spirits were buoyed by comments from chief executive Simon Wolfson, described as a ?retail

London?s blue-chips went sideways, a mixed showing relative to European peers, as all eyes turned to the US with the interest rate decision imminent.The FTSE 100 index ended down just 0.92 of a point at 7,737.38. It had been 0.3% lower in morning trade, however.The FTSE 250 had a more stellar day, rising 51.59 points, 0.3%, to 19,484.40. The AIM All-Share rose just 0.03 of a point to 735.59.The Cb

The FTSE 100 was lower on Wednesday at midday despite UK inflation cooling more than expected, ahead of interest rate decisions in the US on Wednesday and in the UK on Thursday.Stocks in Paris were weighed down by a disappoint profit warning from Kering, which also had an impact on Burberry in London. Prudential shares sunk on the back of its results.The FTSE 100 index was down 9.75 points, 0.1%,

New business profit above forecastsMargins well ahead of estimatesShares close to multi-year lowsInvestors in Africa- and Asia-focused insurer Prudential (PRU) must be wondering what the firm has to do to win the market?s approval after a less than rapturous reception to better-than-expected full-year results.Having opened higher, within a couple of hours the shares were in negative territory down

Stocks in London were mixed on Wednesday morning, as inflation came in cooler than anticipated, ahead of interest rate decisions in the US on Wednesday and in the UK on Thursday.The FTSE 100 index opened down 7.59 points, 0.1%, at 7,730.71. The FTSE 250 was up 10.67 points, 0.1%, at 19,443.48, and the AIM All-Share was up 0.44 of a point, 0.1%, at 736.00.The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.1% at 773.96, th

Stocks in London trod a disparate path, ahead of UK inflation data, which could dictate events on Thursday when the Bank of England makes its latest decision on interest rates.The FTSE 100 index rose 15.75 points, 0.2%, at 7,738.30. But the FTSE 250 ended down 53.72 points, 0.3%, at 19,432.81, and the AIM All-Share fell 1.07 points, 0.2%, at 735.56.The Cboe UK 100 rose 0.2% to 774.76, the Cboe UK