British companies to pay £72.4bn in dividends

Investors in the oil and gas industry, where the largest companies have capped spending and sold assets, can look forward to receiving the largest reward, say Markit’s researchers. The sector is expected to be the single biggest dividend payer, with £12.8bn in shareholder rewards expected in the current financial year. The bulk of that will be distributed by BP and Royal Dutch Shell, with the oil majors expected to make payouts of about £4.4bn each.

Ryan Bransfield, head of UK dividend research at Markit, said that investors may be pleasantly surprised by some dividends. On Friday, fashion retailer Next impressed shareholders by unveiling a £75m special dividend in the wake of robust trading in the run-up to Christmas, an announcement that helped to send its shares up 10pc.

The news from Next demonstrated that there could be some “unexpected surprises during the course of this year”, Mr Bransfield said. “There’s been a lot of concern and negative comment about some retailers, and this has been a contrasting story,” he said.

However, companies in the under-pressure mining sector are set to disappoint shareholders, with total dividends forecast to fall about 11pc.

Precious metals producers African Barrick Gold and Fresnillo already have disclosed cuts to their interim payments.

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