FTSE smashes 10,000 mark as Rolls-Royce and Fresnillo rally

THE FTSE 100 crossed the long-awaited 10,000 mark as markets opened yesterday for the first day of trading in 2026.

- SAMUEL NORMAN

London's blue-chip index climbed 0.7% early on in the session to 10,003.68 after finishing its final day of 2025 just over 0.5% away from the milestone.

Just before midday, the index was trading at 10,039.

"It's time to break out the champagne as UK stock markets have delivered a New Year's treat," Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell, said.

The index was boosted by FTSE darling Rolls-Royce, which topped the leaderboard, rising some 3.7% to 1,192p.

Gold miner Fresnillo, which was the best bluechip performer of 2025 with a rally of over 400%, added 2.9%. Defence stocks Babcock and BAE Systems were also driving the index higher by 2.7% and 2.6% respectively.