Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening 15 points higher at 6,979
on Thursday, according to financial bookmakers.
* WH SMITH PLC: UK's WH Smith Plc SMWH.L on Wednesday warned of the
possible risk of breaching its covenant tests in 2022 after it slumped to a
first-half loss and launched a potential 325 million-pound ($450 million) bonds
offering as the retailer navigates the COVID-19 crisis. * LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE GROUP: The London Stock Exchange Group LSEG.L
said on Wednesday its forecast for expenditure following its $27 billion
acquisition of data and analytics company Refintiv remains unchanged.
* ASTRAZENECA: Argentina's government said on Wednesday it had met with
representatives of drugmaker AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) Plc AZN.L to ask about "difficulties"
in the production of its COVID-19 vaccine and supply to the country.
* OIL: Oil prices extended gains after rising 1% the previous session, as
bullish forecasts on recovering demand this summer outweighed concerns about the
impact of rising COVID-19 cases in India, Japan and Brazil. O/R
* London's FTSE 100 climbed on Wednesday, lifted by energy shares and a slew
of upbeat earnings updates from companies including Lloyds Banking Group and WPP
as investors awaited the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy statement. .L
* UK CORPORATE DIARY:
SMDS.L DS Smith Trading update
RDSA.L Shell Q1 results
NWG.L Natwest Q1 results
INDV.L Indivior Q1 results
EVR.L Evraz Trading update
FLTRF.L Flutter Trading update
INCH.L Inchape Trading update
LRE.L Lanchashire Trading update
MGGT.L Meggit Trading update
SDR.L Schroders Trading update
SN.L Smith & Nephew Trading update
BATS.L BATS AGM statement
ULVR.L Unilever Trading update
* For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on:
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