July saw record highs for the major stock markets as investors generally ignored all the macroeconomic uncertainty – but the final days of the month proved to be a little more volatile as tariff worries resurfaced. The S&P 500 had a run of six straight all-time highs but finished the month with three down days, ending up 2.2% for the month. The Nasdaq rose 3.7% in July, its fourth winning month on the bounce as tech rallied. The FTSE 100 also had a good run, securing a 4.2% gain to achieve its best month since January as it scored a series of new record highs. European stock markets had a rougher ride as some concerns over the impact of tariffs started to weigh after a good run year-to-date.

Favourite Stocks

Tesla, Nvidia and Palantir retained their top spots on the podium as the most traded names on the Saxo platform. Tesla took the crown as the most traded, and with 55% net buys it was clear clients were buying the dip after shares dropped sharply following earnings. There was some trimming of Nvidia exposure even as the stock eked out a series of record highs. Palantir meanwhile became one of the top 20 most valuable US companies after its market cap crossed $375bn in the month of July,

Rising up the ranks, Marks & Spencer became the most actively traded UK-listed stock last month. Other popular UK stocks included WPP, Anglo American and Glencore, while Rio Tinto was sold by clients.

AMD took the fifth spot but saw net selling over the month.

Below them, Coinbase, Alphabet, Coreweave and QuantumScape showed US tech names remained the most ubiquitous investments. Clients were particularly positive on Alphabet , with 64% buys, after a very strong earnings report.

Meme stocks made a comeback and Opendoor Technologies was a strong favourite among clients with 67% net buys.

In addition to Coinbase, heavy buying of BitMine Immersion Technologies underscored strong client interest in gaining exposure to crypto stocks.