The
FTSE 100 Index — also called
FTSE 100,
FTSE, or, informally, the
"footsie" (pronounced
/'f?tsi?/) — is a
share index of the 100 most highly
capitalised UK
companies listed on the
London Stock Exchange. The index began on 3 January 1984 with a base level of 1000; the highest value reached to date is 6950.6, on 30 December 1999.
It is the most widely used of the FTSE Group's indices, and is frequently reported (e.g. on UK news bulletins) as a measure of business prosperity.
The index is maintained by the FTSE Group, an independent company which originated as a joint venture between the Financial Times and the London Stock Exchange. It is calculated in real-time and published every 15 seconds.
FTSE 100 companies represent about 81% of the market capitalisation of the whole London Stock Exchange. Even though the FTSE All-Share Index is more comprehensive, the FTSE 100 is by far the most widely used UK stock market indicator. Other related indices are the FTSE 250 Index (which lists the next largest 250 companies after the FTSE 100), the FTSE 350 Index (which is the aggregation of the FTSE 100 and 250), FTSE SmallCap Index and FTSE Fledgling Index. The FTSE All-Share aggregates the FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and FTSE SmallCap. As of 30 September 2008, the net market capitalisation of FTSE 100 Index was £1,171 billion.[1]
