Week ahead: Covid-19 containment, OPEC in focus
The focus over the coming week will be on the success or not of containment measures across the globe.
For both the UK and among the euro area's four largest economies, Barclays Research is penciling in a gradual lifting of the lockdown measures staring from May.
That would still result in a roughly 20% annualised drop in gross domestic product in the second quarter and of nearly a third in April for a 6.0% year-on-year drop in 2020, Barclays estimated.
However, GDP growth is expected to pick up from the third quarter and to grow by 7.6% in 2021. leaving GDP 1% lower by the end of 2021 than had been anticipated before the Covid-19 pandemic.
Against that backdrop, only a few data points referencing the month of March are due out in the UK over the coming week, including consultancy GfK's consumer confidence index on Monday and the RICS house price balance on Thursday.
Financial markets will also be closely attuned to any decisions on output from OPEC+ members at their meeting on Thursday (which had originally been scheduled for Monday).
Stateside meanwhile, the focus will be on Wednesday's Federal Open Market Committee meeting minutes on Wednesday, followed by the latest weekly initial jobless claims figures (Barclays: 4.5m) on Thursday and a preliminary reading for consumer confidence in April on Friday.
Further afield, consumer and factory gate price data are due out in China, on Friday as well.
Also scheduled for throughout the week are interest rate decisions in Israel, Australia, South Korea and Poland.
Monday 06 April
INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE
PZ Cussons, Ricardo
INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS
Factory Orders (GER) (07:00)
PMI Construction (US) (09:30)
FINALS
GYG, M Winkworth, Mobile Tornado Group
SPECIAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE
Independent Inv Trust
AGMS
RM
FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE
Independent Inv Trust
Tuesday 07 April
QUARTERLY EX-DIVIDEND DATE
Marsh & Mclennan Cos Inc.
INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS
Consumer Credit (US) (20:00)
Industrial Production (EU) (07:00)
GMS
Polar Capital Global Financials Trust
FINALS
Alliance Pharma, Medica Group , Northbridge Industrial Services
ANNUAL REPORT
Menzies(John)
TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS
Gooch & Housego
UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS
Halifax House Price Index (09:30)
FINAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE
Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA
Wednesday 08 April
INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE
Dechra Pharmaceuticals, Meikles Ltd.
INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS
Crude Oil Inventories (US) (15:30)
MBA Mortgage Applications (US) (12:00)
FINALS
Camellia, Impact Healthcare Reit , Tesco, Tesco, The Pebble Group
ANNUAL REPORT
Quilter
AGMS
Athelney Trust, Maven Income & Growth 3 VCT, Rio Tinto
Thursday 09 April
INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE
Diageo, Trifast
INTERIM EX-DIVIDEND DATE
Begbies Traynor Group, Bioventix, British Smaller Companies VCT 2, Henderson EuroTrust, Manchester & London Investment Trust, Smith (DS), VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Ltd.
QUARTERLY PAYMENT DATE
Alpha Real Trust Ltd., Contour Global , GlaxoSmithKline, Regional REIT Limited, Schlumberger Ltd.
QUARTERLY EX-DIVIDEND DATE
BlackRock Latin American Inv Trust, BMO Private Equity Trust, Cineworld Group, JPMorgan Asia Growth & Income, JPMorgan Japan Smaller Companies Trust, Martin Currie Global Portfolio Trust, Mercantile Investment Trust (The), Middlefield Canadian Income PCC, Scottish Inv Trust
INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS
Balance of Trade (GER) (08:00)
Continuing Claims (US) (13:30)
Current Account (GER) (08:00)
Initial Jobless Claims (US) (13:30)
Producer Price Index (US) (13:30)
U. of Michigan Confidence (Prelim) (US) (15:00)
Wholesales Inventories (US) (15:00)
FINALS
PureTech Health
SPECIAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE
EIH Plc
EGMS
Manx Financial Group
AGMS
88 Energy Limited (DI), Helios Towers , Location Sciences Group, Smith & Nephew
UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS
Balance of Trade (09:30)
Gross Domestic Product (07:00)
Index of Services (07:00)
Industrial Production (09:30)
Manufacturing Production (09:30)
RICS Housing Market Survey (00:01)
FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE
Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA, BB Healthcare Trust (Red), Jupiter Fund Management , PCF Group, Safestore Holdings
FINAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE
4Imprint Group, Capital Drilling Ltd. (DI), Direct Line Insurance Group, EMIS Group, FBD Holdings, Gresham Technologies, Johnson Service Group, Octopus Titan VCT , Schroder Asian Total Return Investment Company
Friday 10 April
INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE
Standard Life UK Smaller Companies Trust
FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE
MTI Wireless Edge Ltd.