Thursday preview: US retail sales, ITM Power in the spotlight

Investors' focus on Thursday will be on a raft of US economic data which may be even more closely scrutinised than usual as the central bank's mid-September meeting approaches.

Key amongst those reports will be the retail sale numbers for July due out at 1330 BST, alongside the Philly Fed's regional factory index for the month of August.

On home shores meanwhile, at 0700 BST the Office for National Statistics will release gross domestic product figures for June, which are expected to show that activity remained flat.

In Europe, rate-setters at Norway's central bank are expected to meet and keep interest rates unchanged at 4.5%.

On the corporate side of things, ITM Power is due to release its FY 2024 results.

Investors' focus will be on FY 2025-26 guidance from the manufacturer of electrolysers for green hydrogen production, given ITM's ambition to scale up its revenues.

Delays across the globe to green hydrogen orders could be a headwind, said UBS analyst Christopher Leonard.

What's more, said Leonard, markets were already discounting a pick-up in deliveries to FY27, resulting in the company achieving breakeven on an EBITDA basis.

Hence, said the analyst, "Potential delays to the order trajectory that pushes this back will be negatively received."

Thursday 15 August

INTERIMS

Empiric Student Property , Evoke (DI), OSB Group

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Treatt

INTERIM EX-DIVIDEND DATE

4Imprint Group, Abrdn , Anglo American, Barclays, Chemring Group, Conduit Holdings Limited Com Shs (DI), Coventry 12 1/8% Perm Int Bearing Shs #1000, Domino's Pizza Group, Elementis, Entain, Haleon , Harbour Energy , Hikma Pharmaceuticals, Hiscox Limited (DI), Keller Group, Lancashire Holdings Limited, LMS Capital, London Stock Exchange Group, Rio Tinto, Rotork, TI Fluid Systems

QUARTERLY EX-DIVIDEND DATE

BlackRock Sustainable American Income Trust, GSK, ICG Enterprise Trust, NextEnergy Solar Fund Limited Red, Octopus Renewables Infrastructure Trust , Pershing Square Holdings Ltd NPV, Pershing Square Holdings Ltd NPV (USD), The Renewables Infrastructure Group Limited, Tritax Eurobox (EUR), Tritax Eurobox (GBP)

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Business Inventories (US) (15:00)

Capacity Utilisation (US) (14:15)

Continuing Claims (US) (13:30)

Industrial Production (US) (14:15)

Initial Jobless Claims (US) (13:30)

Philadelphia Fed Index (US) (13:30)

Retail Sales (US) (13:30)

Retail Sales Less Autos (US) (13:30)

FINALS

ITM Power, Rank Group, Redcentric

SPECIAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Octopus AIM VCT

AGMS

C&C Group (CDI), Safestay

UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Balance of trade (07:00)

GDP (Preliminary) (07:00)

Gross Domestic Product (07:00)

Index of Services (07:00)

Industrial Production (07:00)

Manufacturing Production (07:00)

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Marks Electrical Group, Octopus AIM VCT

FINAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Baillie Gifford UK Growth Trust, Heath (Samuel) & Sons, Iomart Group, Montanaro European Smaller Companies Trust, Reach