Until this week, the record high for the FTSE 100 was 8,047.06 points, recorded on 16 February 2023. But earlier this week, the FTSE broke through this barrier. On Tuesday, the FTSE hit a new high of 8,076.52, before retreating. At this point, the index stood 11.9% above its 52-week low of 7,215.76 on 18 August 2023. What’s more, in a recent reversal of a long-term trend, the Footsie is beating the S&P 500. The UK index is up 1.6% in a month, versus a 3% drop for the US index. Still, the FTSE trails its US cousin over longer periods, with the S&P 500 leaping 72.1% over five years, versus 8.3% for its British rival. No wonder global investors prefer US stocks to UK shares. Despite recent strength, the FTSE 100 looks cheap to me. It trades on a multiple of 14 times earnings, delivering an earnings yield of 7.1%. This is perhaps a third cheaper than the global stock market excluding the UK. Also, the UK index offers a dividend yield nearing 4% a year — way higher than the yields on offer from other major markets. This cash payout is covered 1.8 times by historic earnings, for...