The FTSE 100 is on track to end the week more strongly than the US as Britain’s flagship stock index becomes a safe-haven amid the turmoil on global markets.
The blue-chip index could still end the week higher – having been down as much as 3.2pc amid fears of a US recession. It is up 0.2pc today.
Meanwhile, Wall Street is still on track to suffer sharp declines this week after megacap tech stocks were hit particularly hard in the sell-off that began last Friday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite all fell as trading began in New York today.
The FTSE 250 is up 0.4pc today but is on track to end the week down 1.1pc – still a big recovery from falls of as much as 4.2pc compared to the previous week.
JP Morgan strategist Mislav Matejka said Britain “is a good place to be in when activity is disappointing”.
He said: “The UK has traditionally been a low beta, defensive market, which performs well on a relative basis during downturns.
“If global equities see a pullback into summer, the UK could be a relative winner.”
European shares have clawed back nearly all of their losses since the global stocks rout began amid fears of a US recession.
Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “We rarely get to say the UK’s been a benefactor of its low-tech exposure, but that’s certainly been the case this week.”
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