The stockmarket in March: A middling month for share prices

Since 1984 the stockmarket has returned an average of 0.5% in March, with returns positive in 55% of all years.

This ranks March seventh among the months of the year for market performance, although, as the chart below shows, negative returns have been more frequent recently.

Typically, the market rises in March for the first three weeks and falls back in the final week, which is historically one of the weakest weeks of the year.

Generally, small-cap stocks outperform large-cap stocks at the beginning of the year.

March marks the final month of a three-month period when the FTSE 250 strongly outperforms the FTSE 100. On average, the FTSE 250 outperforms the FTSE 100 by 0.9 percentage points.

Triple watching

March is the busiest month of the year for FTSE 100 company dividends. It's also a busy month for company announcements.

Aside from the markets, March has often been a weak month for gold and a strong month for oil.

On 8 March the chancellor will announce his Budget, on the 16th the Monetary Policy Committee's will make an interest rate announcement, and on the 17th it's Triple Witching - when the contracts for stock index futures, stock index options and stock options all expire.

This article is for information and discussion purposes only and does not form a recommendation to invest or otherwise. The value of an investment may fall. The investments referred to in this article may not be suitable for all investors, and if in doubt, an investor should seek advice from a qualified investment adviser.