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UK shares have substantially underperformed their US counterparts over the long term. But recent data comparing the performances of FTSE 100 shares and S&P 500 stocks suggest the tide may be turning.
According to IG, the broader Footsie index has returned a healthy 28% to investors since July 2023. In doing so, it’s outperformed more than half (53%) of S&P businesses during the period, including the list of heavyweight US shares shown below:
| Share/Index | Two-year performance |
|---|---|
| Salesforce | 25% |
| Tesla | 18% |
| Apple | 11% |
| PayPal | 9% |
| McDonald’s | 6% |
| Airbnb | 5% |
| Chevron | 4% |
| Starbucks | -1% |
| FTSE 100 | 28% |
To Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG, the FTSE 100’s outperformance seems obvious.
He notes that “with tariff risks still present and US valuations looking stretched, it makes sense that…
