The Financial Outlook for Personal Investors: Will company payouts support the UK market?

As a 12th company in the Footsie this year announces a special dividend, Russ Mould of A J Bell calculates that these, taken together with cashbacks and regular dividends, have amounted to payouts of £105bn, putting the FTSE on around a 5% yield. With fewer IPOs and placings than usual and dividend cover approaching 2, he feels this ought to be supportive of the market, even if some investors might baulk at the oils, banks and miners that are the big payers.