UK Dividends Dip 0.4% in 2024 Amid Mining Slumps, Yet Finding Strength Elsewhere

Shareholders Stole £92.1 bn in 2024 – and The Numbers Are a Bit Sassy

Ever wondered how much money UK companies handed back to their investors last year? Computershare’s Dividend Monitor says £92.1 bn was pocketed by shareholders in 2024, a fresh bite of cash that’s 2.3 % higher than 2023 on a headline basis.

Why the headline looks a bit brighter than the real story

Special dividends – These one-off payouts added a splash of colour to the headline figure.
Underlying total – When you strip those one-offs out, the core dividend pool actually dipped 0.4 % to £86.5 bn on a constant‑currency basis.

Mining’s Bad Day and the Rest of the Landscape

Mining slumped £4.5 bn in payouts— the biggest drop in a sector that’s been a dividend powerhouse since 2021. Removing mining’s volatility:

Headline growth (excluding mining) jumped a solid 8.4 %.
Underlying, the real growth, “floated” at a more comfortable 4.0 %.

That 4.0% figure lines up nicely with the median per‑share dividend increase of 4.5 % you’d expect across the UK market— basically what most companies aimed for.

Other sectors weren’t all sky‑high either:

Housebuilding felt the pinch from Persimmon and Bellway, whose sagging sales left a dent in the market.
On the flip side, banks, insurers, and food retailers did the nice job of giving dividends a boost.

Overall, 17 of 21 sectors and 77 % of companies either saw their dividend climb or kept it steady — a decent sign of resilience in the midst of challenges.

Crunchtime: The Fourth Quarter

Even in Q4, the headline figure fell 0.5 %, beating the predicted 1.7 % drop due to a weaker pound and pockets of surprisingly strong growth.

Building materials and industrial goods were the bright spots, pulling up the quarter’s performance.
Underlying growth was a modest 0.1 % on a constant‑currency basis.

Bottom line? The dividend story is a mixed bag: a headline that cheers, an underlying trend that keeps the conversation going, and a few heroic sectors that lifted the entire market— just enough to keep shareholders smiling while the rest of the economy takes its time to catch up.

2025 outlook

2025 Dividend Outlook: A Brief Peek at the Future

Our latest report suggests that the dividend scene in 2025 is more of a gentle breeze than a roaring downpour. Here’s what’s on the horizon:

Median growth per share: Plunging slightly into the 4–4.5% band. The market overall might feel the drag from big name cuts, like the upcoming Vodafone/Three merger taking a bite out of payouts.
Currency swing: A weaker sterling has given dividends a lift, yet any return of one‑off special dividends to normal levels could bring the headline growth rate back down.
Headline payouts 2025: Expected at £92.7 bn, a modest 0.7% rise year‑on‑year. When you strip out the specials, the core total climbs to £88.2 bn, a 1% jump in constant currency terms.

Mark Cleland Weighs In

Mark Cleland, the big CEO of Issuer Services at Computershare, says:

“Dividend growth looks better outside the typical mining grind. Add share buybacks, and we’re seeing about £42–45 bn of cash redirected to shareholders in 2024 that might have otherwise gone into dividends.”

“Even so, the reported 4–4.5% growth in 2025 feels modest against a backdrop of

2.5% UK inflation

and the looming cuts of the year ahead.”

“Rising borrowing costs will keep a fair pinch on government finances, business investment, profit margins, and consumer spend. Higher market rates mean companies have more hurdles to clear before they can chuck cash back into the pockets of shareholders.”