BAE Systems and Centrica post solid results

London open

After four up-days in a row, the FTSE 100 is expected to pause for breath, with initial forecasts for a two-point decline on Thursday.

Stocks to watch

BAE Systems has posted full year results that are in line with City expectations and issued guidance that underlying earnings per share will rise between 5-10% in 2016. For 2015, the defence and aerospace group saw underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation decline 1% to £1.68bn despite lifting sales almost 8% to £17.9bn.

British Gas owner Centrica's full year results saw earnings per share of 17.2p beat estimates on revenue that was short of expectations at £28bn. The energy group promised a final dividend of 8.43p, as expected.

Beverage can manufacturer Rexam was looking at a year of positive operations growth, but fluctuations in currency and lower prices saw earnings head south in the last calendar year. Sales increased by 2% over the year to £3.93bn, with underlying operating profit down 3% to £404m, but flat at constant currencies. Underlying earnings per share were up 5% to 39.1p.

Newspaper round-up

William Hill has told regulators that the £2.3bn merger of its two biggest rivals, Ladbrokes and Coral, will harm competition in the bookmaking industry even if the pair agree to sell swathes of betting shops. In William Hill’s submission to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which is investigating the deal between Britain’s second- and third- biggest bookmakers, the company claimed Ladbrokes and Coral should be barred from a tie-up for the same reasons they were blocked from merging eighteen years ago. – Telegraph

British workers’ rights to paid holiday, maternity leave and fair treatment at work would be at risk if the UK voted to leave the European Union, the head of the Trades Union Congress has warned. Frances O’Grady, general secretary of the body representing British trade unions, said the EU debate had been too dominated by business interests, with not enough focus on the potential costs for ordinary workers. “Most of the rights that we depend on derive from Europe,” she said. - Guardian

The financial regulator faces the threat of a judicial review over its proposed deadline for payment protection insurance claims in what could be a huge blow to banks. A claims management company has warned the Financial Conduct Authority that unless it tears up its consultation over a two-year cutoff for all PPI claims, which is due to conclude on Friday next week, it will seek a judicial review on the basis of a legal opinion that the deadline might be unlawful. – The Times

US close

US stock markets enjoyed their first three-day winning streak in what has been a torrid 2016, as encouraging talks on freezing oil production mingled with Federal Reserve minutes that suggested no rate hike before June.

For the first time in its history, the Dow Jones rose more than 200 points for the third day in a row as bullish bargain hunters looked to call an end to the correction, closing up 1.59% at 16,453.83.

The S&P was 1.65% higher at 1,926.82, while the Nasdaq finished up 2.21% at 4,534.07.