Week ahead: Russia, Global inflation in focus

Russia is set to celebrate the fall of Nazi Germany with military parades throughout the country on Monday, but some observers fear that Moscow might use the event to double-down on the disastrous decision to invade its smaller neighbour.

It is against that backdrop that, over the coming week, investors will be focusing on inflation, with consumer price growth in the US expected to have slowed even as it picked up in China and in some euro area countries.

Data due out on Wednesday is seen revealing a slowdown in the annual rate of growth in US CPI from 8.5% in March to 8.1% for April.

In a research note published on 5 May, economists at Barclays Research made the same prediction, adding that they saw CPI slowing to 5.7% by December, although that was up from a prior forecast of 5.0%.

At the core level meanwhile, consensus was for CPI to edge lower, from 6.5% to 6.0% and Barclays expected core CPI to slip to a 4.2% clip by the end of 2022 and 2.8% by December 2023.

"The increases in agriculture commodity futures prices, including higher fertilizer costs, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, pose risks of higher costs for food-at-home categories over the course of the year," they added.

"In addition, a pickup in demand for hospitality services as consumption pivots towards services could drive prices higher, including for restaurants and other food-away-from home categories."

CPI figures due out in China come Tuesday on the other hand are seen revealing a pick up in price pressures from 1.5% in March to a still relatively tame 1.9% for April.

Chinese foreign trade numbers for April are also due out, on Sunday, 8 May.

The results of a slew of US Treasury auctions scheduled for over the coming week may be another one of the main talking points.

On home shores, GDP on Thursday is forecast to reveal quarter-on-quarter growth of 1.0% for the first three months of the year.

Across the Channel, Tuesday will bring with it the ZEW institute's economic confidence gauge for Germany.

It will be followed by final readings for German CPI on Wednesday as well as reports on French and Spanish CPI on Friday.

Monday 09 May

QUARTERLY EX-DIVIDEND DATE

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION COM STK USD0.20 (CDI)

SPECIAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE

SLF Realisation Fund Limited C Shs NPV, SLF Realisation Fund Limited NPV

AGMS

Aviva, Maintel Holdings, Midwich Group

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Phoenix Group Holdings

Q1

Kosmos Energy (DI)

Tuesday 10 May

INTERIMS

Treatt

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Ltd.

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Wholesales Inventories (US) (15:00)

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

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

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

FINALS

FD Technologies Public Limited Company, Shanta Gold Ltd., Skillcast Group, Trellus Health

ANNUAL REPORT

Shanta Gold Ltd.

EGMS

Doric Nimrod Air One Ltd

AGMS

Albion Development VCT, Centamin (DI), Direct Line Insurance Group, Fidelity European Trust, Gresham Technologies, HGCapital Trust, IWG , Just Group, Just Group, Macfarlane Group, Sancus Lending Group Limited NPV, Sancus Lending Group Limited NPV, Temple Bar Inv Trust

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Capital Limited (DI), Domino's Pizza Group, F&C Investment Trust, Hammerson, Rathbone Group, Scotgems, Spirent Communications

Wednesday 11 May

INTERIMS

Brewin Dolphin Holdings, Compass Group, Ten Lifestyle Group

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Consumer Price Index (US) (13:30)

Crude Oil Inventories (US) (15:30)

MBA Mortgage Applications (US) (12:00)

FINALS

Airtel Africa , Anexo Group , Angling Direct , Mirriad Advertising , Vertu Motors

AGMS

Abrdn Asian Income Fund Limited NPV, Antofagasta, Capricorn Energy, Capricorn Energy, Cenkos Securities, Clarkson, Conduit Holdings Limited Com Shs (DI), Harbour Energy , Hostelworld Group , Impact Healthcare Reit , Irish Continental Group Units (Comp) (CDI), Jupiter Fund Management , LungLife AI, Inc (DI) (Reg S), Marshalls, Maven Income & Growth 4 VCT, National Express Group, Rentokil Initial, Savills, Schroder Asian Total Return Investment Company , Spirax-Sarco Engineering, Spire Healthcare Group, Tasty, Tasty, Tclarke , TP Icap Group , Transgloble Energy Corporation NPV (DI), Uniphar (CDI), Windward Ltd. (DI)

TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS

Conduit Holdings Limited Com Shs (DI), Renishaw, Spirax-Sarco Engineering

UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Retail Sales (00:01)

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Dairy Farm International Holdings Ltd (Bermuda), Dairy Farm International Holdings Ltd. (Jersey), Dairy Farm International Holdings Ltd. (Singapore), Hongkong Land Holding Ltd. (Bermuda), Hongkong Land Holding Ltd. (Jersey), Hongkong Land Holding Ltd. (Sing.Reg), Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd (Singapore Reg), Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd. (Bermuda), Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd. (Jersey), Smith & Nephew

Q1

Bank of Georgia Group, CableVision Holdings S.A. GDS, Grupo Clarin SA GDR (Reg S)

Thursday 12 May

INTERIMS

Grainger, Titon Holdings, Versarien

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

SCS Group

INTERIM EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Avingtrans, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (DI), Fidelity Special Values, Focusrite, VH Global Sustainable Energy Opportunities

QUARTERLY EX-DIVIDEND DATE

BP, Custodian Reit , Ediston Property Investment Company, Greencoat Renewables (CDI), Honeywell International Inc., Octopus Renewables Infrastructure Trust , Picton Property Income Ltd, The Renewables Infrastructure Group Limited

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Continuing Claims (US) (13:30)

Initial Jobless Claims (US) (13:30)

Producer Price Index (US) (13:30)

Q3

Seraphim Space Investment Trust

GMS

Quilter

FINALS

BT Group

ANNUAL REPORT

Plant Health Care

IMSS

Hargreaves Lansdown

AGMS

Alfa Financial Software Holdings , Alfa Financial Software Holdings , Anglo Pacific Group, Baillie Gifford Shin Nippon, Balfour Beatty, BP, Bridgepoint Group (Reg S) , Cairn Homes (CDI), Cineworld Group, Cineworld Group, Circassia Group , Condor Gold, Contour Global , Convatec Group , Empresaria Group, Eurocell , FBD Holdings (CDI), Genel Energy, Gresham House, Hiscox Limited (DI), Howden Joinery Group, Lloyds Banking Group, Logistics Development Group, Logistics Development Group, Luceco , Michelmersh Brick Holdings, OSB Group , Quilter, Rolls-Royce Holdings, Secure Trust Bank, Serinus Energy NPV, Shefa Gems Ltd (DI), SIG, SIG, The Gym Group, Unbound Group, Unite Group

TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS

Balfour Beatty

UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Balance of Trade (07:00)

GDP (Preliminary) (07:00)

Gross Domestic Product (07:00)

Index of Services (07:00)

Industrial Production (07:00)

Manufacturing Production (07:00)

RICS Housing Market Survey (00:01)

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Moneysupermarket.com Group, Standard Chartered, Transgloble Energy Corporation NPV (DI)

FINAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Aptitude Software Group , Bank of Ireland Group (CDI), Barr (A.G.), BlackRock Smaller Companies Trust, Centaur Media, Clarkson, Empresaria Group, Epwin Group, Foxtons Group , Franchise Brands, Greggs, Gresham House, H&T Group, Holders Technology, Inchcape, Lancashire Holdings Limited, Macfarlane Group, Phoenix Spree Deutschland Limited Shs NPV , Reach, Serco Group, Strix Group , Tandem Group

Friday 13 May

INTERIMS

Sage Group

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Smiths Group, Softcat

QUARTERLY PAYMENT DATE

City of London Inv Trust, JPMorgan Japan Small Cap Growth & Income, Marsh & Mclennan Cos Inc., Scottish Inv Trust

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

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

Industrial Production (EU) (10:00)

U. of Michigan Confidence (Prelim) (US) (15:00)

GMS

Gresham House Energy Storage Fund

AGMS

Derwent London, Joint Stock Company National Atomic Company Kazatomprom GDR (Reg S) , Metro Bank, TT Electronics, TT Electronics

TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS

Contour Global

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

AIB Group (CDI), Alpha Fx Group , Antofagasta, Drax Group, Dunedin Enterprise Investment Trust, HGCapital Trust, Hunting, Ibstock , IMI, Photo-Me International, Taylor Wimpey, Travis Perkins, Uniphar (CDI)