The new year is only three weeks old but already the FTSE 100, the best-known UK stock index, is already up by just under 5.5%.

That is better than the 0.9% growth it eked out for the whole of 2022.

 

And it seems possible that, at some point in coming sessions, the Footsie will challenge the intra-day record high of 7,903.5 that it hit on 22 May 2018.

The Footsie is not alone in having made an encouraging start to the year.

i heard Marks & Spencer's are opening many shops.