The Weekly Roundup 31st Oct

Hi Ladies,

Trick or Treat?🎃

Yes, It’s Halloween and we’re excited to announce we’ve teamed up with Karve: Transformer Pilates Studios to bring you a special treat in honour of Talk Money Week next week. Download the Propelle app and register with your email for an exclusive 15% off Karve class packs and memberships delivered straight to your inbox – but hurry as the offer is only valid 3rd – 7th November.

Today we’re breaking down how chocolate has tricked the market during the rise in the cost of living – showing high performance of sweet treats.

And from sweet tooth to tooth fairy – Ayesha shares how her children are turning their lost teeth into long term growth.

A word from Ayesha

Before we look at how the markets have been performing this week, Propelle Founder & CEO, Ayesha Ofori, reflects on navigating the financial challenges of being a working parent during school holidays.

The £5 Tooth Fairy Investment

After last week’s newsletter about investing in the ones you love, I got a message from a reader that made me pause. She asked: “This all sounds great, but realistically, how young can you actually start teaching kids about investing? My daughter is six – is that too young?”

It reminded me of something that happened about a year ago with my daughter when she was seven.

She’d just lost a tooth and was thrilled – not because of the wobbly tooth itself, but because she knew what was coming: tooth fairy money.

She got £5… that’s the going rate in our house. Way more than the £1 I used to get. That’s inflation for you! We were talking about what she’d buy with her £5. I expected her to say Lego or a new game. She said neither. She asked me to put it in an ISA.

I was totally speechless. What does a seven-year-old know about ISAs?

Turns out, quite a bit. She told me: “It’s where you put money if you want it to grow into even more money. You have them in Propelle.” Clearly she listens to my work calls.

I’d opened a JISA (junior ISA) for her – how could I not. Since then every bit of money she gets – birthday cards from grandparents, birthday presents from friends and family, Christmas money, pocket money – goes straight in. She’s so excited about it. She asks me almost daily to check her balance to see how much it has grown. To be honest, that part is a bit annoying. I’ve had to explain to her that you don’t need to check everyday. Wealth is built over time.

So to answer that reader’s question: no, six is not too young. Seven clearly isn’t either. A JISA can be opened for a child when they’re born.

I know what some of you might be thinking: isn’t this taking away the magic of childhood? Turning a seven-year-old into a miniature Warren Buffett?

But here’s what I’ve realised – I wasn’t stealing her childhood. I was giving her something most of us never had: an early, healthy relationship with money that could genuinely change her future.

And if recent data tells us anything, it’s that our daughters need this head start more than ever.

This is precisely why I’m also so passionate about teaching children, especially girls, about money from the earliest possible age. We can prepare the next generation to weather it better than we did.

Every time my daughter receives money  – whether from the tooth fairy, birthday cards, or pocket money – we’d have a conversation about it. Not a lecture, but an age-appropriate chat about what money can do when you give it time to grow.

I explain that the £5 the tooth fairy left isn’t just £5 forever. In her investment account, that money is working for her, growing over time, so that when she’s older she has more options and choices because of her financial head start.

So if you’re wondering whether your child is too young to start learning about investing – they’re probably not. Start small, keep it age-appropriate, and watch what happens.

You might be surprised at how quickly they get it.

Upcoming events

Talk Money Week: Propelle x Karve

We’ll be hosting three free post-class sessions throughout the day on 6th November at KARVE Chelsea to get you comfortable talking about money.

Use the code PRKRV15 to receive your exclusive 15% off discount on Karve class packs and memberships under the following terms:

• Redeemable across all three UK studios
• One-time use per person
• Applicable to memberships (first 3 months only) and 10, 20, 40, and 100 class packs
• Cannot be combined with other offers or promotions

Discount valid only during Talk money week – 3rd – 7th November. 

The Gift That Grows: How to Build Wealth for the Children You Love

  📆20th November | 🕰️12.30- 1.30pm | 📌Online | 🔗 Sign up here

Top 5 Market Headlines of the Week

Here are some of the biggest headlines we’ve seen this past week. 📰

• US Federal Reserve cuts rates to lowest level in three years
  The US central bank lowered interest rates by 0.25% on 29th October to help support the economy. However, Fed Chair Jerome Powell warned markets not to expect another cut in December, saying policymakers are divided on what to do next. This disappointed investors and led to a drop in gold prices on Thursday.
•  Trump and Xi Reach Trade Deal on Rare Earths and Tariffs 
  President Trump and China’s Xi Jinping agreed to a one-year pause on rare earth export controls, while the US cut fentanyl-related tariffs on China from 20% to 10%. The deal reduces overall tariffs on Chinese goods to 47% and extends the trade truce beyond its 10th November deadline.
•  WPP Shares Plunge 17% After Fresh Profit Warning 
  Advertising giant WPP crashed to a 27-year low after new CEO Cindy Rose reported Q3 revenue down 8.4%. The company admitted performance was “unacceptable” with its media division hit hard by client losses including Coca-Cola.
•  Shell Beats Q3 Expectations Despite Weak Oil Prices 
  Shell reported better-than-expected Q3 profits on 30th October despite weak oil prices and announced a £350m share buyback. The energy giant continues its strong cost reduction programme, achieving £800m in savings in H1 2025.
•  FTSE 100 Hits Multiple Record Highs This Week 
  London’s FTSE 100 continued its record-breaking rally, hitting new all-time highs on Monday and Tuesday before pulling back slightly on Thursday before slipping into the red on Friday as traders digest the latest big tech earnings across the pond.

Sources: CNN, CNBC, AJ Bell, Hargreaves Lansdown, Trading Economics, Yahoo Finance

Little learn of the week

💡Little Learn of the Week: What is a Junior ISA (JISA)?
You’ve probably heard us mention JISAs before, but what exactly are they?

The Basics
A Junior ISA is a tax-free savings or investment account for children under 18. Think of it as a regular ISA, but specifically designed for kids.

How It Works

• Parents, family, or friends can pay in up to £9,000 per tax year
• All growth is completely tax-free (no income tax, no capital gains tax)
• The money belongs to the child, but they can’t access it until they turn 18
• At 16, the child can manage the account themselves (but still can’t withdraw)
• At 18, it automatically converts to an adult ISA and they gain full control

Two Types to Choose From
1. Cash JISA: Works like a savings account – your money earns interest
2. Stocks & Shares JISA: Your money is invested in the stock market – higher potential returns but with investment risk

Why It Matters
Starting early makes a huge difference. Contributing £25 a month from birth could result in a pot of £8,119 by age 18 (again assuming a 5% annual growth). Increasing that to £30 a month could grow the pot to almost £10,000 (£9,742) over the same investment timescale. The value could fall of course too.

The Key Point
JISAs could give your child’s money 18+ years to grow, completely tax-free. It’s one of the best ways to build wealth for the next generation.
Sources: MoneySavingExpert, Fidelity

Major Indices

Last Week’s Major Indicies

Before we dive in…

Indices are lists of major sections of a market. Basically, they give a gauge of the health of a certain financial market. You’ll see below the value of some major global indices, as well as how much it changed from opening, with a percentage.

FTSE 100 (UK): 9,716.81 -0.44%

S&P 500 (US): 6,822.34 -0.99%

Euro Stoxx 50 (Europe): 5,676.93 -0.39%

Nasdaq (US): 23,581.14 -1.57%

Dow Jones (US): 47,522.12 -0.23%

Accurate as of Friday 31st October 10.10AM
Source: Yahoo Fianance

Mini Market Deep Dive

📊 Mini Market Deep Dive: Why Chocolate Stocks Are Sweet Again This Halloween
Cocoa prices have fallen 51% this year after hitting record highs and chocolate companies are finally getting some breathing room. But here’s the really interesting bit for investors.

The Resilience of Small Luxuries
Despite cocoa prices surging 153% between 2020 and 2024, a basket of major chocolate stocks (Lindt, Hershey, Mondelez, and Nestlé) is up 14% this year – the strongest performance since 2021.
How did they survive? Simple: people may cut back on big luxuries, but they rarely give up small ones. That £2 chocolate bar stayed in the shopping basket even when prices rose sharply.

The Investment Lesson
Lindt has been the standout performer, up 30% this year and 57% over five years. This shows why “affordable luxuries” – small treats that bring joy without breaking the bank – make resilient investments.

When budgets tighten, we skip the expensive meal out. But the chocolate? That stays

Why It Matters
Even when cocoa prices doubled, shoppers kept buying – they just adapted. This Halloween, as cocoa prices ease, chocolate companies can rebuild their margins while keeping customers happy. For investors, it’s a reminder that sometimes the best investments aren’t flashy – they’re in the simple pleasures people refuse to give up, even in tough times.
Source: Yahoo Finance

Fear & Greed

The Fear & Greed Index is a way to gauge stock market movements and investor attitudes. The theory is based on the idea that excessive fear tends to drive down share prices, and greed tends to see share prices rise.

Whilst it’s based on the US, it matters to us in the UK because it helps us understand where general sentiment of the US market sits, which often has very close ties to other global markets and investment portfolios.

The index has risen slightly from 28 to 36, hanging on in fear territory this week.

The Fear & Greed Index is used to gauge the mood of the market. Many investors are emotional and reactionary, and fear and greed sentiment indicators can alert investors to their own emotions and biases that can influence their decisions. When combined with fundamentals and other analytical tools, the Index can be a helpful way to assess market sentiment.

As always, we see this as a useful pulse check, not a forecast.

Invest With Propelle
If you invest, your capital is at risk and your investments can go down as well as up. Past performance is not an indicator of the future.

Keep your eyes open for next week’s index and how these market movements affect your finances and investments.
Source: CNN

Have a great weekend!

Love, The Propelle team 
PS: Full list of Sources available below.

CNN, Yahoo Finance, 
CNN, CNBC, AJ Bell, Hargreaves Lansdown, Trading Economics,
MoneySavingExpert, Fidelity, Yahoo Finance