Wednesday preview: Covid-19 vaccines, Burberry in focus

The focus in markets is likely to be on the news-flow around potential Covid-19 vaccines following confirmation that a third phase clinical trial for Moderna Therapeutics's vaccine treatment will go ahead in July as scheduled.

Against that backdrop, UK CPI figures for June are due out at 0930 BST.

Those will be followed later in the session by readings on American industry for June and July in the form of monthly industrial production data and the Empire State manufacturing gauge, respectively.

Across the Channel, the main data point to watch will be Italian government debt figures for May.

Burberry's first quarter trading update may make for interesting reading, given its exposure to Asian markets.

Management warned in May that the three months to June would suffer from a "severe disruption" from the pandemic, what with half its stores closed.

But more shops had since reopened and the hope was that good sales in China and South Korea had continued, said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK.

For McCarthy&Stone, UBS analyst Kregor Kuglitsch has penciled-in a 40% year-on-year fall in first half volumes to 507 at an average selling price of £300,000 or 6% below the year earlier level.

The retirement community developer's sales were thus seen shrinking 44% to £152m including freehold reversionary interest.

Kuglitsch meanwhile pegged the firm's gross profit at £21m with operating income seen coming in at £3m, excluding potential gains from the revaluation of rental assets.

Hence, his estimate for the company's profit before tax and exceptionals was £1m.

According to the analyst, areas to watch included recent demand trends post lockdown, risks to the carrying value of assets, pricing trends and progress on finding external capital for the rental business.

Wednesday 15 July

INTERIMS

McCarthy & Stone

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Witan Investment Trust Plc

INTERIM EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Leeds Building Society 13 3/8% Bearing Shares

QUARTERLY PAYMENT DATE

Assura

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Capacity Utilisation (US) (14:15)

Crude Oil Inventories (US) (15:30)

Import and Export Price Indices (US) (13:30)

Industrial Production (US) (14:15)

MBA Mortgage Applications (US) (12:00)

AGMS

Air Partner, Air Partner, Biotech Growth Trust (The), Burberry Group, Danakali Limited NPV, JPMorgan European Inv Trust Growth Shares, Octopus AIM VCT, Palace Capital , Severn Trent, Thalassa Holdings Ltd. (DI), Zaim Credit Systems

TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS

Burberry Group

UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Consumer Price Index (07:00)

Producer Price Index (07:00)

Retail Price Index (07:00)