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“It’s been a testing week for investors, with markets experiencing a couple of nasty days. Fortunately, UK stocks are on track to have recovered all the week’s losses, showing that it can pay to hold your nerve when it comes to investing. Patience is paramount,” says Russ Mould, Investment Director at AJ Bell.
“The FTSE 100 traded 0.3% higher on Friday at 7,142, thanks to strength in pharma and consumer goods companies.
“Airline stocks did their best to fly higher following encouraging numbers from the sector. Wizz Air managed to fill nearly two thirds of its seats on aircraft in service during June, while Ryanair flew nearly three times as many people that month versus May.
“Under the circumstances, these are positive numbers. However, the airline business model is built on filling planes near or at capacity and then scooping up extra fees on top for everything from early boarding to storing bags.
“The sector needs a continuous flow of people through airports and ongoing Covid restrictions imposed by various governments around the world mean the industry is still some way off from operating smoothly.
“The FTSE 250 advanced 0.4% to 22,708, with notable gains from property related stocks including housebuilders Bellway and Crest Nicholson, and builders’ merchant Travis Perkins.
“The housebuilding sector remains a firm favourite with investors despite the stamp duty holiday in England and Northern Ireland starting to be tapered. Fundamentally there is still a major shortage of homes in the UK, so perhaps investors are taking the view that housebuilders will be able to easily sell every property they construct and that we aren’t going to see a major property crash once the stamp duty holiday ends completely.”
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