Press releases 2012

-      63 per cent of investors have positive outlook for UK economy over next 12 months
-      Natural resources, technology sectors see most interest
-      Survey marks opening of largest ever London Investor Show

63 per cent of UK private investors feel optimistic about the UK economy over the next 12 months, up from 47 per cent one year ago, according to a survey of over 1,000 investors by London Stock Exchange and research firm ONVA.

The “Investor Confidence Barometer”, a measure of economic confidence developed as part of the survey, also saw a seven per cent annual increase to 52 per cent, demonstrating heightened optimism. Investors said they were most interested in investing in the natural resources, technology, healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors.

The results come on the eve of the annual London Investor Show which will be held at London’s Olympia and which, with a record 5,000 registered attendees, is set to be the largest ever event of its kind in the UK.

To mark the day, participating experts and financial journalists will tomorrow join Alexander Justham, CEO at London Stock Exchange, to open trading on the UK markets.

Alexander Justham, CEO, London Stock Exchange, said:

“It is encouraging to see that private investors are optimistic on the economy. Their participation is crucial in providing funding to entrepreneurs and businesses, which in turn will help fuel long term economic recovery.”

Nicolas Bertrand, Head of Equity and Derivatives Markets at London Stock Exchange Group, said:

“We are delighted with the record attendance at this year’s London Investor Show, which demonstrates how active the retail community has become. In parallel, we have been working hard to make our markets more accessible to investors, developing our new retail bond market, ORB; organising interactive events around the UK; and working with partners on educational materials.”

The London Investor Show is the largest private investor conference in the UK and offers unrivalled access to expert advice, interactive seminars, panel sessions, exhibitions and workshops. The show’s exhibitors cover a full range of saving, investment and trading products available to private investors.

For more information visit www.londoninvestorshow.com.

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For further information please contact:

Jonny Blostone/                               Press Office +44 (0)20 7797 1222
Tom Gilbert                                     newsroom@londonstockexchange.com

Notes to editors:

About London Stock Exchange Group:

London Stock Exchange Group (LSE.L) sits at the heart of the world’s financial community. The Group operates a broad range of international equity, bond and derivatives markets, including London Stock Exchange; Borsa Italiana; MTS, Europe's leading fixed income market; and Turquoise, offering UK and Russian derivatives trading, pan-European and US lit and dark equity trading. Through its markets, the Group offers international business unrivalled access to Europe’s capital markets.

The Group is a leading developer of high performance trading platforms and capital markets software and also offers its customers around the world access to an extensive range of real-time and reference data products and market-leading post-trade services. The Group is also home to a world leading index provider FTSE, which creates and manages over 200,000 equity, bond and alternative asset class indices.

Headquartered in London, United Kingdom with significant operations in Italy and Sri Lanka, the Group employs around 1,900 people.

Further information on London Stock Exchange Group can be found at www.londonstockexchangegroup.com

About the survey:

The survey was carried out during October 2012. 1,002 UK private investor respondents were asked questions including “How optimistic do you feel about the UK economy over the next 12 months?” Answers to that question were given on a scale of 1 to 100. 63 per cent of respondents gave an answer in the upper half of the range, compared with 47 per cent last year. The survey was commissioned by London Stock Exchange and carried out by ONVA (www.onva.co.uk).