(Adds company news items & futures)
March 11 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening up 39
points on Wednesday, according to financial bookmakers with futures up 0.7%
ahead of cash markets open.
* B&M: British discount retailer B&M European Value Retail BMEB.L said on
Wednesday it had agreed the sale of its loss-making German business, Jawoll, to
a consortium led by AC Curtis Salta for 12.5 million euros ($14.2 million).
* G4S: Britain's G4S GFS.L , one of the world's largest private security
firms, on Wednesday reported an annual statutory loss after taking a 291 million
pound ($374.75 million) charge chiefly related to its UK cash business.
* BALFOUR BEATTY: Infrastructure firm Balfour Beatty BALF.L confirmed on
Wednesday it would wait until it had a clearer understanding of the coronavirus
situation before making any moves on its capital structure. * QUILTER: British wealth manager Quilter QLT.L on Wednesday posted a
small rise in 2019 adjusted profit, but warned that a coronavirus-induced
selloff in equities has made its 2020 outlook uncertain. * BANK OF ENGLAND: The Bank of England unexpectedly cut interest rates by
half a percentage point to 0.25% on Wednesday in a move to bolster Britain's
economy against disruption caused by the coronavirus outbreak. * FORMULA ONE: Two members of the Haas Formula One team and one from McLaren
were quarantined on Wednesday as a precaution amid coronavirus fears ahead of
Sunday's season-opening race in Melbourne. * LOOKERS: British car dealership Lookers LOOK.L said on Tuesday it had
identified potentially fraudulent transactions in one of its operating divisions
and postponed its annual results until the second half of April. * BARCLAYS: Barclays Plc BARC.L has told employees that a member of its
trading staff in its Manhattan office has tested positive for the coronavirus,
the company said on Tuesday. * FINANCIAL FIRMS: Banks and other large financial companies in major cities
across the world ramped up their emergency measures to combat the spread of the
coronavirus on Tuesday, with Barclays Plc BARC.L and BlackRock Inc BLK.N
confirming one case in their New York offices. * OIL: Oil prices climbed for a second day on Wednesday as hopes U.S.
producers would cut output lent support, but gains were capped by growing doubts
about Washington's stimulus package to fight the coronavirus, which continues to
spread globally. * GOLD: Gold prices rose on Wednesday after a steep fall in the previous
session, as doubts about a stimulus package proposed by U.S. President Donald
Trump to soften the economic impact of the coronavirus epidemic weighed on risk
sentiment. * The UK blue-chip index .FTSE closed down 0.1% on Tuesday as optimism
around stimulus measures by major central banks was overshadowed by heightened
coronavirus fears in Sweden. For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on:
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