The following chart plots the average performance of the FTSE 100 Index during February since 1984 (more info on this type of chart).
![FTSE 100 average month chart for February [1985-2013]](http://stockmarketalmanac.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Average-month-chart-Feb-2014.png)
As can be seen, historically the market has generally risen for the first two and a half weeks of February, and then fallen back a little in the final week and a half.
January 2014
The following chart shows the average performance of the market in January (1984-2013) and overlays the actual performance in January 2014.
![FTSE 100 average month chart for January [1985-2013]](http://stockmarketalmanac.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Average-month-chart-Jan-overlay-Jan-2014-2014.png)
In January 2014 the big difference from the average January was the big share sell-off in the final week and a half.
