(Adds futures, news items)
Nov 28 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is expected to open 23
points lower at 7,407 on Thursday, according to financial bookmakers, with
futures FFIc1 down 0.2% ahead of the cash market open.
* OCADO: British online grocer Ocado OCDO.L plans to open its first mini
robotic warehouse, which it calls a customer fulfilment centre (CFC), in
Bristol, western England, it said. * IMMUPHARMA: British pharmaceutical firm ImmuPharma IMM.L said it had
signed a licensing and development agreement for Lupuzor, a first-in-class
treatment for auto-immune disease Lupus, with U.S. company Avion
Pharmaceuticals. * DANSKE BANK: Danske Bank DANSKE.CO has hired Frans Woelders from Royal
Bank of Scotland RBS.L as its new chief operating officer and member of the
executive management team, the bank said. * GO-AHEAD: Transport company Go-Ahead Group Plc GOG.L slightly lowered
its expectations for its regional bus division's annual financial performance,
as it works to integrate a new Manchester bus company and faces cost pressures.
* VIRGIN MONEY UK: Virgin Money UK Plc VMUK.L reported a 7% fall in
full-year underlying profit and suspended its dividend for the year, as the
lender set aside more money to settle the PPI mis-selling scandal in Britain.
* UK HOUSE PRICES: British house prices rose more than expected in November,
according to figures from mortgage lender Nationwide, suggesting next month's
national election was not putting further pressure on the market which remains
sluggish. * HSBC: HSBC HSBA.L aims to shift $20 billion worth of assets to a new
blockchain-based custody platform by March, in one of the biggest deployments
yet of the widely-hyped but still unproven technology by a global bank.
* BREXIT: Britain's Dec. 12 election could well result in another parliament
where no party commands a majority, Prime Minister Boris Johnson's top advisor
Dominic Cummings said on Wednesday. * BREXIT: Prime Minister Boris Johnson's lead over the opposition Labour
Party has fallen to seven points ahead of the Dec. 12 election, according to a
Savanta ComRes poll for the Daily Telegraph newspaper on Wednesday. * UK AUTOMOTIVE OUTPUT: British automotive output dropped by an annual 4% in
October, the 16th month out of the last 17 to record a fall, as demand from both
domestic and overseas buyers decreased, according to a trade body. * UK BUSINESS SERVICES: Profits at British professional and business
services firms dropped by the most since 2011 for a second quarter running and
businesses are cutting back on investment, the Confederation of British Industry
said. * OIL: Oil prices fell, extending losses from the previous session after
official data showed U.S. crude and gasoline stocks rose against expectations
and production hit a record. * GOLD: Gold rose as investors bought the safe-haven metal amid new doubts
about whether the United States and China will sign a trade deal after President
Donald Trump signed legislation supporting protesters in Hong Kong, irking
Beijing. * EX-DIVS: International Consolidated Airlines ICAG.L , JD Sports Fashion
JD.L , Johnson Matthey JMAT.L , Land Securities LAND.L , National Grid
NG.L , Severn Trent SVT.L and Vodafone Group VOD.L will trade without
entitlement to their latest dividend pay-out on Thursday, trimming 8 points off
the FTSE 100 according to Reuters calculations * The UK blue-chip index hit a near four-month high on Wednesday as recent
risk-on sentiment was bolstered after U.S. President Donald Trump said
Washington and Beijing were close to a "phase one" trade deal, while an
impressive forecast lifted BAT shares. TODAY'S UK PAPERS
> Financial Times PRESS/FT
> Other business headlines PRESS/GB