On the banking front, Barclays will be hoping to put bonus controversies behind it when it updates the market on Tuesday.
Investec is forecasting underlying first quarter profit before tax for Barclays of £2.0bn, with just over half of that coming from the controversial investment banking arm, Barcap.
The broker is tipping £1.76bn for reported profit before tax.
The numbers were heavily trailed at the company’s rambunctious annual general meeting, however, and possibly of more interest are the bank’s plans to update the market on further actions it is taking to “better position both the group and the investment bank to deliver improved and sustainable returns for our shareholders given the regulatory and operating environment”.
The following day fellow banking giant HSBC reports on its first quarter performance.
“The banking group last updated the market in February with full-year pre-tax profits that were c.9% higher than the previous year, but which fell short of market expectations as revenues and costs both disappointed,” notes broker Charles Stanley.
“Attention … will focus on the extent of ongoing revenue softness, mainly due to difficult trading conditions in emerging markets, and management’s ability to control costs in response to this. The share price suggests that investors are not confident of a significant improvement in returns in the near term from either a material pick-up in revenues or a meaningful reduction in costs,” the broker added.
Significant announcements expected
Monday
Companies: None
Economic: EU: Sentix Investor Confidence, PPI. US: Final Services PMI, ISM Non-Manufacturing PMI.
Tuesday
Companies: Finals: JZ Capital Partners (LON:JZCP). Trading Statement: Barclays (LON:BARC), Countrywide (LON:CWD), Hiscox (LON:HSX).
Economic: UK: Services PMI. EU: Spanish Unemployment Change, Spanish Services PMI, Italian Services PMI, Final Services PMI, Retail Sales. US: Trade Balance, IBD/TIPP Economic OptIMIsm.
Wednesday
Companies: Trading Statement: Carillion (LON:CLLN), CRH (LON:CRH), easyJet (LON:EZJ), G4S (LON:GFS), HSBC Holdings (LON:HSBA), Legal & General Group (LON:LGEN), Meggitt (LON:MGGT), SABMiller (LON:SAB). Interims: Imperial Tobacco Group (LON:IMT), Inmarsat (LON:ISAT).
The following widely held stocks are trading in ex-dividend form on Wednesday: Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets, Rexam, Ted Baker, Unilever, Rightmove, JD Sports, CSR, Bunzl,
Economic: UK: BRC Shop Price Index. EU: German Factory Orders, French Industrial Production, French Trade Balance, Retail PMI. US: Prelim Nonfarm Productivity, Prelim Unit Labour Costs, 10-y Bond Auction, Consumer Credit.
Thursday
Companies: Interims: BT Group (LON:BT.A), Randgold Resources (LON:RRS). Trading Statement: Avocet Mining (LON:AVM), Barratt Developments (LON:BDEV), Beazley (LON:BEZ), IMI (LON:IMI), Intu Properties (LON:INTU), Morgan Sindall (LON:MGNS), Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (LON:MRW), Perform Group (LON:PER), Promethean World (LON:PRW), RSA Insurance Group (LON:RSA), SuperGroup (LON:SGP), Vitec Group (The) (LON:VTC).
Economic: UK: RICS House Price Balance, Asset Purchase Facility, Official Bank Rate. EU: German Industrial Production, Minimum Bid Rate, ECB Press Conference. US: Unemployment Claims, 30-y Bond Auction.
Friday
Companies: Interims: Telefonica Sa (LON:TDE). Trading Statement: Drax Group (LON:DRX), Man Group (LON:EMG), Morgan Advanced Materials (LON:MGAM), Resolution (LON:RSL).
Economic: UK: Manufacturing Production, Trade Balance, Industrial Production, NIESR GDP Estimate. EU: German Trade Balance, French Gov Budget Balance, Italian Industrial Production. US: JOLTS Job Openings, Wholesale Inventories.