Dividends distributed by
The sharp rise was mainly driven by companies restarting dividends as they repaired their balance sheets from the financial shock of the Covid crisis. 90 per cent of the year-on-year increase came from firms reinstating payments to shareholders.
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Mining and banking led the way as the sectors with the greatest amount of capital distributed to shareholders.
Miners paid out £6.3bn in dividends in the second quarter of this year, mainly driven by
The PRA recently lifted restrictions on banks reinstating dividends to levels seen before the onset of the pandemic.
Baseline comparisons were also contributing factors prompting the rise. In the second quarter of 2020, three quarters of companies cancelled or cut dividends as they moved to insulate their finances from the pandemic.
“As normal life returns to Britain’s streets, so it is returning to business too. All the indicators of economic growth look very encouraging, and companies have come out of the crisis in most cases with their balance sheets looking strong.”
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The post Covid recovery pays dividends for
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