Sept 10 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening 17
points lower at 5,996 on Thursday, according to financial bookmakers.
* SHELL: Nigeria asked a Milan court on Wednesday to order Eni ENI.MI and
Royal Dutch Shell RDSa.L to pay $1.092 billion as an immediate advance payment
for damages it is claiming in one of the oil industry's biggest-ever corruption
trials. * TESCO: Tesco TSCO.L , Britain's biggest retailer, said on Wednesday it
would next month trial grocery home deliveries with drones as it experiments
with different ways to reach more customers. ASTRAZENECA: AstraZeneca's AZN.L suspension of global trials of its
experimental coronavirus vaccine after an illness in a study subject in Britain
has cast doubt on prospects for an early rollout of one of the most advanced
COVID-19 vaccines in development. * GSK: GlaxoSmithKline Plc GSK.L said on Wednesday the U.S health
regulator approved its lung disease drug Trelegy Ellipta for expanded use,
making it the first inhaler delivering three drugs at once to be prescribed for
uncontrolled asthma in the country. * GOLD: Gold steadied near a one-week high on Thursday as the dollar
weakened, but the yellow metal traded in a narrow $8 range as investors held
back from making large bets ahead of the European Central Bank's monetary policy
decision due later in the day. * OIL: Oil prices slid on Thursday after data showed U.S. crude stockpiles
unexpectedly rose last week, stoking concern about a sluggish recovery in fuel
demand as coronavirus cases continue to surge in many countries. * EX-DIVS: Berkeley BKGH.L , Croda International CRDA.L , Evraz EVRE.L ,
Hikma HIK.L , Imperial Brands IMB.L , London Stock Exchange LSE.L , Mondi
MNDI.L , M&G MNG.L , Prudential PRU.L , Reckitt Benckiser RB.L , Schroders
SDR.L , Standard Life Aberdeen SLA.L will trade without entitlement to its
latest dividend pay-out on Thursday, trimming 7.7 points off the FTSE 100
according to Reuters calculations. * The UK blue-chip index .FTSE ended 1.4% higher on Wednesday, as weakness
in the pound looked to benefit major exporters, while the mid-cap index was held
back by consumer stocks on fears of new restrictions on social activity.
UK CORPORATE DIARY:
WM Morrison Supermarkets MRW.L HY results
Ricardo Plc RCDO.L FY results
Dixons Carphone DC.L Q1 trading update
Saga Plc SAGA.L HY results
Dunelm Group DNLM.L FY results
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