FTSE for Friday: Bank of England holds the key

The UK central bank is widely expected to cut interest rates next week, but you never know. Independent analyst Alistair Strang gives his view on the blue-chip index.

12th December 2025 07:38

by Alistair Strang from Trends and Targets

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I suspect the FTSE 100 intends to flutter around the 9,660 level until such time the Bank of England (BoE) decides to reduce interest rates. Given the UK’s behaviour of following the US lead during 2025, it looks like we should anticipate a drop next Thursday 18th.

    Near term, above 9,716 points has the potential of powering a lift to an initial 9,757 points, a level at which we suspect some hesitation until the BoE decision. Above this level has the threat of more gains to 9,865 points, also called a Santa Rally!

    Should things intend to go wrong, delaying positive market movements, now below 9,659 threatens useless reversal to 9,643 with our secondary, if broken, calculating at a more significant 9,600 points.

    Visually, this even makes some sense if the market is intending keep the FTSE doing doggy paddles until the 18th.

    Have a good weekend.

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    Source: Trends and Targets. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.

    Alistair Strang has led high-profile and "top secret" software projects since the late 1970s and won the original John Logie Baird Award for inventors and innovators. After the financial crash, he wanted to know "how it worked" with a view to mimicking existing trading formulas and predicting what was coming next. His results speak for themselves as he continually refines the methodology.

    Alistair Strang is a freelance contributor and not a direct employee of Interactive Investor. All correspondence is with Alistair Strang, who for these purposes is deemed a third-party supplier. Buying, selling and investing in shares is not without risk. Market and company movement will affect your performance and you may get back less than you invest. Neither Alistair Strang or Interactive Investor will be responsible for any losses that may be incurred as a result of following a trading idea. 

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