THE Euros may have just started but it is already coming home in the City — as London has won back the title of Europe’s most valuable stock market.
As Kylian Mbappe’s France played their first game last night, Paris was reeling from being overtaken by Britain’s FTSE index.
It is the first time since March 2022 that the UK has been Europe’s number one.
The shift comes after around £200billion was wiped off the Paris stock market after President Emmanuel Macron called a snap election.
It caused the worst market sell-off in two years, with the value of Paris-listed stocks tumbling by 6 per cent.
The French exchange’s value fell to £2.46trillion — while London-listed firms are valued at an overall £2.5trillion.
The FTSE 100 has hit record highs this year as investors wake up to the cheap valuations of some of Britain’s biggest firms.
Danni Hewson, analyst at AJ Bell, said: “There is value to be found.”
Despite the UK and France heading to the polls within days of each other, the City has barely reacted.
Analysts claim this is because Labour’s Rachel Reeves has tried to win over the City by styling her party as “pro-business”.
She and Jonathan Reynolds, Labour’s shadow business secretary, yesterday held another breakfast meeting with business chiefs including Llloyds’ Charlie Nunn and Andrea Rossi at M&G.
Charles Hall, of investment bank Peel Hunt, said the difference between France and Britain “shows that politics really does matter”.
He added: “Just as the UK may be entering a period of greater stability, France is going in the other direction.
“The UK is increasingly being regarded as a safe haven internationally, which should support both sterling and the UK equity market.”
CASH HUBS AIM
LABOUR is planning to open 350 banking hubs to give people better access to cash and financial services.
It comes after 6,000 branches shut in the last decade.
There are just 36 permanent Cash Access hubs in the UK, although there are 15 pop-up versions and the firm says it has 76 on the way.
Cash Access is owned and funded by nine of the UK’s biggest banks.
Labour says it will change rules so areas that “currently don’t have any high street banks will be first in the queue” for a cash hub.
EURO football hangovers could cost businesses £409million per match, says analysis by Netvouchercodes.
It is based on estimates about 11.8million drinkers who’ll watch the Euros and studies showing productivity drops by 24.9 per cent on a hangover.
A BAD MOODY’S
THE financial woes at Warrington, one of the UK’s most indebted councils, have worsened after Moody’s scrapped its credit rating.
Warrington, a town of 211,200 people, has £1.8billion of debts after pursuing a high-risk investment strategy.
It also provided a controversial £200million loan to THG tycoon Matt Moulding.
Moody’s said it axed the rating because external auditors had not approved the council’s accounts.
Warrington blamed “challenges” in securing auditors.
IT’S BEER TO PEER..
BREWDOG founder James Watt has launched a venture to allow regular customers to become influencers — and get paid for positive posts on social media.
Mr Watt, who dates I’m a Celebrity… winner Georgia Toffolo, has invested £1million in Social Tip.
The app platform has already teamed up with brands including Huel and pub chain Slug & Lettuce.
For each post on it, the average Instagram user, with 700 to 1,000 followers, would receive from £5 to £10 — with Social Tip taking a 25 per cent commission from the brands.
Mr Watt said the initiative builds on the power of “genuine peer-to-peer recommendations”.
He stepped back as CEO of craft beer giant Brewdog only last month, and said of his quickfire switch to a new venture: “I just love building things.”
And he has already sought advice from former Made in Chelsea star Georgia, an influencer with nearly 3million followers.
PAY RISE WIND-UP
THE boss of United Utilities has bagged a 69 per cent pay rise despite reports the firm pumped millions of litres of sewage into Lake Windermere.
Louise Beardmore’s pay shot up from £833,000 to £1.4million in the past year, according to United Utilities’ annual report.
She landed a £420,000 bonus despite scoring zero per cent on pollution targets.
Higher profits meant United Utilities dished out £340million to shareholders in dividends.
MARMITE IN RUSSIA AXE ROW
THE King has been urged to strip Cadbury and Marmite of their royal warrants due to their manufacturers’ presence in Russia.
A Ukrainian campaign group has said Marmite maker Unilever and Cadbury’s owner Mondelez are contributing to the war by operating in Russia.
Unilever is still selling ice creams there despite fierce criticism.
Marmite has had a royal warrant since 2016 while Cadbury’s dates back to 1854.
Ukraine protest groups are now urging the Royal Family to show “that companies contributing to the suffering in Ukraine will not be bestowed with the privilege and honour of holding a royal warrant”.
The boss of Mondelez has defended its decision to stay in Russia, saying that Western companies who left sold their assets to “friends of Putin”.
Unilever has argued that staying is the “least worst” option because assets could be seized by Russia.