Monthly Commentary October 2025

Health Care and Utilities were the two sectors that stood out as making exceptional progress in October with the former just edging into a double-digit return. The only sector to decline was Industrials.

Overall, the UK equity market made a meaningful advance of low single digits over the month helped a little by the pound dropping against the dollar. Oil prices were little changed in dollar terms, but the Energy sector did relatively well in October.

Over the year to date only three sectors - Communications, Consumer Discretionary and Real Estate - have posted returns that are less than double-digits gains. The best performing sector is Financials which is up by about one third.

There was a small, but meaningful, increase in forecasts for dividends to be paid by UK companies next year. They came mainly from companies in the mining, energy and banking sectors that have significant overseas interests and account in dollars.