Underlying dividends at record high within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Underlying dividends – excluding specials – hit a United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland record of £84.6billion in 2015, up 6.8 per cent year-on-year, the most recent United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern

Ireland Dividend Monitor from Capita plus Services found.

The total figure for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland dividends was ten per cent not up to 2014, however solely as a result of figures for that year were flattered by Vodafone’s record special dividend on the sale of Verizon Wireless.

The strongest dividend growth was seen in firms exposed to the united kingdom shopper market, with house builders like Barratt Developments and retailers like Next seeing a healthy rise in payouts.

Dividends conjointly grew powerfully within the money services sector.

The FTSE250 outperformed the London blue chip index once it came to dividend growth last year.

FTSE250 dividends skilled the quickest growth since 2011, up 22.6 per cent to £10.2billion.

By distinction, FTSE100 firms saw dividend payouts fall thirteen.7 per cent to £75.7billion, tho' the Vodafone dividend in 2014 skew comparative figures.

Excluding sharply lower special dividends, FTSE100 dividend payouts accumulated five.5 per cent to £73.9billion, compared with the FTSE250’s abundant stronger underlying fifteen.3 per cent rise.

However, the image wasn’t entirely positive, with several massive firms – like Centrica and commonplace hired – forced to chop dividends.

The outlook for the approaching year is additional bleak, with the total result of falling oil and artefact costs set to be felt, significantly within the mining sector.

This year might see the primary decline in underlying dividends since 2010, with several firms foreseen to scale back payouts.

According to Capita plus Services, headline dividends might drop one.3 per cent to £86.5billion, whereas underlying dividends area unit forecast to fall zero.9 per cent to £83.8billion.

Justin Cooper, chief government of investor solutions, a part of Capita plus Services, said: “The refulgence of a robust 2015 has been blemished by the unpleasant prospects for 2016. The high yields of a number of the UK’s largest firms mirror disbelief round the property of their payouts.

“Our forecast accounts for £3.4billion of cuts that have already been proclaimed, however a minimum of an extra £2.1billion may well be in danger.

“But this can be to not say that every one firms face a bleak 2016. a couple of terribly massive dividend-payers area unit skewing the image. we tend to still expect sturdy dividend growth to return through from firms higher insulated from negative international trends, with mid-caps seemingly once more to outmatch the highest one hundred. choosey investors will still realize the gems within the rough.”