THE WEEK AHEAD
COMPANY NEWS
● Bovis Homes will announce its final year results on Monday. They are expected to be decent, with the company planning the resumption of dividend payments.
● Also expect good news on dividends on Tuesday. The German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company BMW will announce its results and is expected to bump up dividend payments to €1.30 per share.
● G4S will also announce on Tuesday. The international security solutions group protects rock stars and sports stars, people and property.
● The chocolatier Lindt & Spruengli will be eager for the sweet smell of success when it announces on Tuesday.
● On Wednesday, Wacker Chemie will announce. We will see if the chemical company is in its element.
● The global aviation group Deutsche Lufthansa will hope to see soaring profits when it releases its profits this Thursday.
● On Friday, Jupiter will announce its final year results.
The fund management group manages investments for both private and institutional investors. It will be banking on reporting a successful year.
ECONOMICS NEWS
● On Tuesday, the Bank of Japan will announce its decision on interest rates. Currently Japan has the lowest at 0.05 per cent.
● The UK’s ILO unemployment rate for January will be released on Wednesday. A key indicator for the health of the economy.
● On Wednesday, the Norges Bank will announce on rates, while the Swiss National Bank will do the same on Thursday. Both Scandinavian countries have hinted that rates will rise soon.
● On Thursday, The Bank of England will publish its Inflation Attitudes Survey. Sober reading for sure.
POLITICAL NEWS
● Philip Hammond will be up in front of the Transport Select Committee on Monday, answering a flurry of questions on the recent adverse weather conditions.
● On Monday and Tuesday, Ireland’s new finance minister Michael Noonan will meet his European counterparts at the Ecofin conference.
● The Federal Open Market Committee will meet on Tuesday. An announcement will be made on whether QE2 will be wound up at the end of June as planned.
● The University and College Union is planning for strike action across Scottish universities over pension reform. A sign of things to come?