FTSE 250 hits new record high

The UK’s mid-cap stock index hit a new record high on Monday morning, highlighting its outperformance so far this year compared to the benchmark FTSE 100.

The FTSE 250 rose 1 per cent on Monday morning amid wider positivity across European stock markets in the aftermath of France’s first-round presidential election vote.

The index, which is made up of more UK-focused companies than the FTSE 100, has risen fairly steadily since the start of the year, gaining 8.2 per cent so far, in contrast to the more volatile bluechip index.

The FTSE 100 is dominated by multinational companies which benefit from a weaker pound and has closely tracked sterling in recent months, tending to rise when the currency falls and vice versa.

The pound’s sharp appreciation last week dragged the FTSE 100 down into a loss for the year to date, though a 1.7 per cent rise this morning has helped to take it back into positive territory.