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Bitcoin rose above $70,000 for the first time as a new wave of crypto mania swept investors.
The digital currency hit an all-time high of $70,175, bringing year-to-date gains to more than 60 percent.
Gold also hit a record high of $2,185 an ounce amid growing hopes of interest rate cuts on both sides of the Atlantic in the coming months.
And global stock markets hit new highs as neither-too-hot nor too-cold U.S. employment figures suggested the world’s largest economy has weathered a sustained period of higher borrowing costs and can now look forward to some relief.
However, there was one notable exception amid all the joy, as the FTSE 100 index fell 0.4 per cent, or 32.72 points, to 7,659.74 and the FTSE 250 gained 0.1 per cent, or 17.8 points, to 19,601.78.
Midas touch: Bitcoin hit an all-time high of $70,175, taking year-to-date gains over 60 percent
The weak performance in London will do little to allay concerns that the UK stock market has lost its shine and is now lagging behind its global rivals.
The broader rally came after US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said inflation is “not far” from where it needs to be for the central bank to cut interest rates.
The Bank of England and the European Central Bank are expected to follow suit this summer.
In London, life insurer Just Group posted a record year in 2023 as its profits rose 47 percent to £377 million.
It hopes to reach its goal of doubling its profits in three years instead of five. The shares rose 13.7 per cent, or 12.2p, to 101.4p.
The Informa exhibition business tapped into growing demand for live events in India, the Middle East and Africa. Group revenue soared 41 per cent to £3.2bn last year, while profits rose by almost three quarters to £854m.
The group raised its 2024 guidance and expects £3.45bn to £3.5bn in revenue and a profit of £950m to £970m. The shares rose 0.3 per cent, or 2.6p, to 808.2p.
Currys is on track to sell its Greek and Cypriot business for £175m. The electronics retailer expects to complete the sale of Kotsovolos to Greek utility Public Power Corporation in the first half of April and use the proceeds to reduce debt. The shares lost 1.5 per cent, or 1p, to 64.5p.
Entain, owner of Ladbrokes and Coral, also came under more pressure. On Thursday, the gaming giant reported annual losses of more than £840m by 2023 and warned it faces a £40m hit this year due to regulatory challenges.
The shares, which fell 4.9 per cent in the previous session, fell a further 5.4 per cent, or 43 pence, to 747 pence.
Engineering firm Spirax fell after Stifel analysts urged clients to sell the stock, offsetting an upgrade by investment bank Berenberg. The shares fell 0.8 per cent, or 80 pence, to 10,580 pence.
Property firm Henry Boot has gone down new paths after its development arm secured planning permission for a major office project in Manchester city centre. The shares rose 0.8 per cent, or 1.5p, to 182.5p.
Energy group Petrofac has won a three-year contract worth more than £155m to help operate a gas field for a state-owned company in Turkmenistan. The shares gained 6.5 per cent, or 1.5 pence, to 24.76 pence.