Tuesday preview: UK employment, Fed's Powell, Vodafone in focus

Investors' attention will be trained on the latest UK employment report on Tuesday.

Economists anticipate that the jobs data will reveal a modest further softening.

The annual rate of growth in average earnings, excluding bonuses, is expected to have slowed from 5.6% over the three months to February to 5.3% over the first quarter.

The number of claimants meanwhile is seen edging up from 10,900 in March to 13,900 for April.

Later in the session, the market spotlight will swivel across the Channel, to the Dutch central bank, where Federal Reserve chairman, Jerome Powell, will participate in an event starting from 1500 BST.

Earlier, at 1330 BST, the US Department of Labor will release producer price data covering the month of April.

German and Spanish CPI figures for that same month will also be forthcoming in the morning, together with the results of the ZEW institute's economic confidence survey for Germany in May.

On the corporate side of things, Vodafone is due to publish its fourth quarter and 2024 fiscal year results.

UBS analyst Polo Tang believes investors' focus will be on any evidence of a turnaround in Germany.

In particular, on a stabilisation in the number of net adds in broadband would soothe worries that the company's entire German cable network needs to be replaced with fibre, which might cost an additional €19bn in capital outlays.

Deconsolidating Spain and Italy and adjusting for a €160m benefit from shared services income in those two countries implied full-year adjusted pro-forma earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation of €11.1bn (consensus: €11.02bn), alongside free cash flow of €2.65bn (consensus: €2.44bn), Tang added.

Tuesday 14 May

FINALS

Vodafone Group, DCC (CDI), Angling Direct

INTERIMS

Marston's, Treatt, On The Beach Group

TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS

Greggs

AGMs

Computacenter, Luceco, FDM Group (Holdings), Cirata, TI Fluid Systems, Aptitude Software Group, Henderson High Income Trust, Chesnara, Phoenix Group Holdings, Midwich Group

GMs

Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd. GDR (Reg S)

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Fidelity European Trust, Rathbones Group, BlackRock World Mining Trust, InterContinental Hotels Group, Mondi, OSB Group, Uniphar (CDI)

UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Claimant Count Rate (07:00)

Unemployment Rate (07:00)

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Consumer Price Index (GER) (07:00)

ZEW Survey (GER) - Economic Sentiment (10:00)

ZEW Survey (EU) - Economic Sentiment (10:00)

ZEW Survey (GER) - Current Situation (10:00)

Producer Price Index (US) (13:30)