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Bigger than…
Victoria Jones/Zuma Press
A global rally for stocks helped boost the London FTSE 100 index on Wednesday, but it may take many rallies for the index to ever catch up with U.S. technology giant Apple.
Apple’s market capitalization stood at nearly $2.3 trillion on Wednesday, with shares up 7.5% over the previous two days week on enthusiasm for technology shares. The company recently split its stock.
The entire market capitalization of stocks in the FTSE 100, as of Wednesday, was valued at roughly £1.5 trillion pounds, (just under $2 trillion) according to FactSet.
Apple AAPL, -2.38% shares slipped 1.4% on Wednesday, but have surged 7.5% over the previous two days.
Down 21% year to date, the FTSE 100 has lagged behind its European counterparts, with the Stoxx Europe 600 SXXP, +1.58% having lost just over 10%. And the FTSE is down 3.6% in the current quarter, versus a 3% gain for the Europe index.
Of course, it’s literally Apples to pumpkins when it comes to comparing a London index to the might of the U.S. tech giant. Apple shares are up 84% year to date.
Home builders were giving the FTSE 100 a boost on Wednesday after a survey from Nationwide Building Society showed U.K. house prices surging to an all-time high in August, fueled by pent-up demand and record low mortgage rates.
Shares of house builder Barratt Developments BDEV, +7.42% surged over 7%, making it the best performer on the FTSE 100. The U.K. house builder said profit almost halved in fiscal 2020 due to the pandemic, but analysts said the news wasn’t all bad.
“Today, the builder revealed that forward sales are 22% higher at £3.7 billion, and that customer demand is very strong,” said David Madden, analyst at CMC Markets in a note to clients.
Barratt rivals Taylor Wimpey TW, +6.63% and Persimmon PSN, +5.05% rose over 5% each.
