Market overview: Shares dip ahead of earnings avalanche

1630:Close UK stocks slipped slightly following the record highs set in the previous session. Investors took the reduction in Greek uncertainty and more dovish than expected remarks from Fed chair Janet Yellen as the ‘green light’ on Tuesday. However, on Thursday a raft of economic data is scheduled for release, not to mention an avalanche of corporate results due out in the UK. St.James Place led gains after its most recent set of financials, followed by shares in Citi on the heels of positive comments out of Citi. Gilts rose on the back of a solid German five-year debt sale, despite the negative yields on offer. FTSE 100 down 14.25 points to 6,935.38.

1620: Shares in Petrofac are now moving sharply higher after the company's chief told Bloomberg TV he sees the oil price back above $70 per barrel sooner than most expect. Nonetheless, this is what analysts at Morgan Stanley had to say on the company's results: "We expect a negative market reaction to Petrofac's write-downs, GreaterStella delay, McDermottalliance, despite positives around lower net debt.Stay UW relative to OilServices".

1530: US commercial crude oil inventories rose by 8.4m barrels per day last week according to the latest inventory data just out from the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

1500: US new home sales slipped 0.2% month-on-month in January, to reach an annualised rate of 481,000. That was a tad better than the 475,000 forecast by analysts.

1415: Reading this from Australia? Are you an investor looking for yield? If you are then you may want to consider investing in your country's banks instead of in BHP Billiton whose dividend policy has become increasingly aggressive - at least until commodity prices recover - says the FT's Lex column. Simply put, Aussie banks offer a greater and less risky dividend yield.

1357: US pre-market futures are pointing to a steady open on Wall Street today ahead of Janet Yellen's second testimony before members of Congress.

1305: Three-month copper futures are slipping by 0.1% to hit $5,781.50 per metric tonne.

1215: The rise in shares of Quindell is being linked by some to a report in the FT Alphaville that Slater Gordon might pursue a full take-over of Quindell and not just its legal division.

1100: Air France management hosted a sell-side analyst dinner on Tuesday night. Intense competition from Gulf carriers was a key theme. Air France sees an increasing need for multiple partners to offset this. The challenges faced by Air France and Lufthansa should make IAG's double digit free cash flow yields stand out on a relative basis and drive a re-rating of the stock. It now trades at 5.9 times EV/EBITDAR versus 5.5 for those two rivals.

1056: Shares in Gulf Keystone are soaring after the company informed it is now engaged in talks for the possible sale of assets.

1036: Berlin has auctioned €3.28bn in five-year notes, attracting a negative yield, of -0.08%, for the first time ever. However, the bid-to-cover ratio jumped to 2 from 1.1 the last around.

0946: Shares in Sky are moving higher after being added to Citi's conviction buy list.

0930: UK mortgage approvals reached 36,394 in January, according to the British Bankers’ Association, following a reading of 35,816 in the prior month. The consensus forecast had been for 36,000.

0915: The yield on 10-year Irish sovereign bonds has fallen below 1%.

0828: Stocks are recovering after initially dipping lower at the opening bell. That follows the record close seen on the Footsie on Tuesday. The dip in shares comes despite a stronger than expected reading on Chinese manufacturing sector activity before the opening bell while the morning press is awash with headlines heralding the soon to come interest rate rises Stateside. St.James is doing best on the top flight index following the release of its finals. Companies in the oil patch are generally lower, with oil field services firm Petrofac being the exception. AO World is cratering after delivering a profit warning. FTSE 100 down 6 points to 6,943.64.