Week ahead: Investors brace for potentially volatile week

All eyes next week will be on Parliament as MPs start to debate the Prime Minister's 'Plan B' for Britain's withdrawal from the European Union.

Given that little is likely to have changed from the first draft, the spotlight will be on whether amendment will be passed that will allow the risk of a 'hard deal' to be taken off the table.

There is quite a bit riding on that and FX traders are likely to be especially skittish, given the run-up in Sterling over the past few weeks to its best level in roughly a year-and-a-half, which has taken it right-up to a key level of technical resistance against the euro at 1.16.

In the background, barring surprises at the weekend or in the early part of the week, on Wednesday and Thursday the spotlight will shift to Washington and the second round of trade talks with Beijing.

In recent days, some analysts have argued that a fully-fledged accord between the two economic giants is unlikely over the next few months, but that a 'detente' of sorts in the ongoing tariff war is, which in itself would be a positive.

Hence, financial markets will be fixated on any clues as to whether that scenario, at least, is coming to fruition.

Complicating matters, and perhaps limiting markets' reaction - for better of for worse - to all of the above, investors will also be treading carefully ahead of the release of the monthly US non-farm payrolls report, on Friday.

Also quite important, as Michael Hewson at CMC Markets UK points out, will be a preliminary reading on euro area consumer prices for the month of February, also on Friday.

It will come in the wake of another spate of week Eurozone data during the previous week and the recent 'dovish' policy bias adopted by the European Central Bank's Governing Council.

The key Caixin manufacturing sector PMI for China is also due to published at the end of the week.

Not enough? US technology giants Apple, Facebook and Amazon.com are due to publish their latest quarterly numbers on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

As well, on Wednesday, markets will be digesting the US central bank's policy announcement on Wednesday, with both the policy statement and follow-up press conference likely to be extremely interesting.

Elsewhere on the central bank front, Governor Mark Carney and the Monetary Policy Committee's Ben Broadbent are set to participate at the Bank of England's Future Forum, on Monday.

And Bank chief economist Andrew Haldane is set to deliver a speech on the following day.

On another note, investors will be keeping a close eye on events in Venezuela.

If all goes well, there would seem to be potential for stockmarkets to continue climbing the proverbial 'wall of fear' but there are obviously multiple risk events that could easily spark increased volatility.

Monday January 28

INTERIMS

Sensyne Health

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Business Climate Indicator (EU) (10:00)

Industrial Confidence (EU) (10:00)

M3 Money Supply (EU) (09:00)

Services Confidence (EU) (10:00)

FINALS

SThree

AGMS

JPMorgan Chinese Inv Trust, Lowland Investment Co, ZCCM Investments Holdings 'B' Shares

TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS

Paragon Banking Group, Petra Diamonds Ltd.(DI)

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Marston's

Tuesday January 29

INTERIMS

Filtronic, Hargreaves Lansdown, NWF Group, PZ Cussons

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Amigo Holdings

QUARTERLY EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Marsh & Mclennan Cos Inc.

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Consumer Confidence (US) (15:00)

Q4

Domino's Pizza Group

FINALS

Crest Nicholson Holdings

SPECIAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

InterContinental Hotels Group

AGMS

Greencore Group, UDG Healthcare Public Limited Company

TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS

Domino's Pizza Group, DP Poland, Greencore Group, Intermediate Capital Group, Luceco , Royal Mail, UDG Healthcare Public Limited Company

UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Consumer Credit (09:30)

Wednesday January 30

INTERIMS

Best of the Best, Hargreaves Services

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

BCA Marketplace, Meikles Ltd., Vianet Group

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Crude Oil Inventories (US) (15:30)

Economic Sentiment Indicator (EU) (10:00)

GDP (Preliminary) (US) (13:30)

GFK Consumer Confidence (GER) (07:00)

Import Price Index (GER) (07:00)

Pending Homes Sales (US) (15:00)

Q3

Wizz Air Holdings

FINALS

Aukett Swanke Group , Low & Bonar, Staffline Group

SPECIAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

BHP Group

AGMS

CYBG , Henderson European Focus Trust, JPMorgan Indian Investment Trust, Renew Holdings, Topps Tiles

UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

M4 Money Supply (09:30)

Mortgage Approvals (09:30)

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Up Global Sourcing Holdings

Thursday January 31

INTERIMS

Alumasc Group, Angle, Diageo, Rank Group, Renishaw

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Bilby, BMO Global Smaller Companies, Circle Property , Dairy Crest Group, International Biotech Trust, Iomart Group

INTERIM EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Cohort, CPL Resources, Downing One VCT , Finncap Group , IG Group Holdings, K3 Capital Group , NB Private Equity Partners Ltd.

QUARTERLY PAYMENT DATE

BMO Private Equity Trust, F&C Commercial Property Trust Ltd., Middlefield Canadian Income PCC, Schroder Income Growth Fund

QUARTERLY EX-DIVIDEND DATE

APQ Global Limited, Chenavari Toro Income Fund Limited NPV, Funding Circle SME Income Fund, Merchants Trust, Novacyt S.A. (CDI), Picton Property Income Ltd

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Chicago PMI (US) (14:45)

Continuing Claims (US) (13:30)

GDP (Preliminary) (EU) (10:00)

Initial Jobless Claims (US) (13:30)

Personal Consumption Expenditures (US) (13:30)

Personal Income (US) (13:30)

Personal Spending (US) (13:30)

Retail Sales (GER) (07:00)

Unemployment Rate (EU) (12:30)

Unemployment Rate (GER) (08:55)

Q3

BT Group

Q4

Royal Dutch Shell 'A', Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (ATT) GDR (Reg S)

FINALS

Infrastrata, Premier Oil, Primary Health Properties, Redhall Group, Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (ATT) GDR (Reg S), Unilever

SPECIAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Abbey

SPECIAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Hollywood Bowl Group, Trans-Siberian Gold, Victrex plc

AGMS

Avon Rubber, Britvic, Connect Group, Hollywood Bowl Group, Infrastrata, Utilitywise plc

TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS

3i Group, Britvic, Dairy Crest Group, Discoverie Group, Ergomed , Evraz, Gattaca, IQE, Polymetal International, PPHE Hotel Group Ltd

UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

GFK Consumer Confidence (00:01)

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

DotDigital Group, European Investment Trust, Henderson Alternative Strategies Trust , Lowland Investment Co, Schroder Asia Pacific Fund, WH Smith

FINAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Blackstone /GSO Loan Financing Limited C Shs NPV, CC Japan Income & Growth Trust, Hollywood Bowl Group, Montanaro UK Smaller Companies Inv Trust, Renew Holdings, Tracsis, Victrex plc

Friday February 01

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Aveva Group, Burberry Group, KCOM Group, United Utilities Group, Vodafone Group

QUARTERLY PAYMENT DATE

BMO UK High Income Trust , Mercantile Investment Trust (The)

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Auto Sales (US) (20:30)

Construction Spending (US) (15:00)

ISM Manufacturing (US) (15:00)

ISM Prices Paid (US) (15:00)

Non-Farm Payrolls (US) (13:30)

PMI Manufacturing (EU) (09:00)

PMI Manufacturing (US) (14:45)

Unemployment Rate (US) (13:30)

SPECIAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

BMO UK High Income Trust B Shares

AGMS

Brewin Dolphin Holdings, Catenae Innovation, Dukemount Capital, Euromoney Institutional Investor

UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Consumer Credit (09:30)

Mortgage Approvals (09:30)

PMI Manufacturing (09:30)

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

BBA Aviation 5% Cum Prf, McCarthy & Stone, Schroder UK Mid Cap Fund, Unicorn AIM VCT