Tuesday preview: UK employment, Imperial Brands in focus

The focus on Tuesday will shift back towards the UK and the March employment report.

Barclays Research expects the latest jobless claims figures for April will show a 1.0m surge following March's inconsequential 12,000 person rise.

The unemployment rate for March is also seen registering a sharp rise, from 4.0% in February to 5.0% for March, alongside a dip in both headline and core average weekly earnings.

Acting as a backdrop, US Federal Reserve chairman, Jerome Powell, will testify before the US Senate's Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee at 1500 GMT.

Across the Channel meanwhile, the spotlight will be on the ZEW institute's closely-followed euro area economic confidence index for May.

For Imperial Brands's first half results, UBS analyst Nik Oliver is forecasting revenues from so-called next generation products of approximately £70m.

That would mark a greater than 50% reduction in sales and act as a 220 basis point drag on group organic growth, he estimated.

In its last update, on 31 March, the tobacco giant guided for a 10% decline in first half earnings per share on the back of about £85m-worth of writedowns and provisions in NGP, net of cost savings.

Excluding those write-downs on the other hand, profits and revenues were seen up slightly at constant currencies, thanks to robust tobacco pricing.

Tuesday 19 May

INTERIMS

Avon Rubber, Greencore Group, Hardide, Imperial Brands , Renew Holdings, Shoe Zone, Topps Tiles, Tritax Eurobox (GBP), UDG Healthcare Public Limited Company

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Building Permits (US) (13:30)

Housing Starts (US) (13:30)

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

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

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

FINALS

Blackstone/GSO Loan Financing Limited, DCC

ANNUAL REPORT

Blackstone/GSO Loan Financing Limited

SPECIAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

RDL Realisation

EGMS

Bankmuscat (S.A.O.G) GDR (Reg S)

AGMS

Accesso Technology Group, Allianz Technology Trust, Aquis Exchange , Bank of Ireland (Governor & Company Of The) Non-Cum Prf 'A' Liquidation, Bank of Ireland Group , Bankmuscat (S.A.O.G) GDR (Reg S), Diaceutics , Fidelity Japan Trust, Glenveagh Properties, Joint Stock Company National Atomic Company Kazatomprom GDR (Reg S) , Portmeirion Group, PPHE Hotel Group Ltd, Quixant, Restaurant Group, Royal Dutch Shell 'A', Royal Dutch Shell 'B', Schroder Asian Total Return Investment Company , Science Group , Team17 Group

TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS

Georgia Capital , Glenveagh Properties

UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Claimant Count Rate (07:00)

Unemployment Rate (07:00)

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Downing Three VCT J Shs, Downing Two VCT G Shs, Downing Two VCT K, Kenmare Resources, Phoenix Group Holdings , Standard Life Aberdeen, TP ICAP

Q1

Georgia Healthcare Group