Thursday preview: BoE, BT Group in focus

(Sharecast News) - Financial markets' focus on Thursday will be on the Bank of England as rate-setters at the Old Lady on Threadneedle Street announce their latest monetary policy decisions.




No change is expected, but there is keen interest in the economic assessment of the pandemic's impact and of what the likely path of the economic recovery will be that will be published alongside their announcement.

Stateside meanwhile, the focus will be on weekly jobless claims figures.

Given the roughly 20m person drop seen in the ADP payrolls report the day before, investors will want to see if expectations for a slight slowing in the pace of job destruction is confirmed.

Across the Channel meanwhile, European Central Bank vice-president, Luis de Guindos, will deliver his institution's latest annual report to the European parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs.

Industrial production data for March are also due out in Germany and France.

Norway's central bank is also scheduled to meet to decide on interest rates.



For BT Group's fourth quarter update, analysts at UBS are forecasting only a slight dip in sales and profitability but possibly a larger than expected cut to the dividend payout.

Consensus is for the telecommunications carrier to report a 3.3% decline in sales to reach ?5.66bn and a 1.0% dip for earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation to ?2.01bn.

The company's payout meanwhile is expected to be cut from 15.4p per share for the year before to 14.0p for financial year 2020 and again to 9.9p in 2021.

However, UBS analyst Polo Tang believes the payout may be cut to 5.0p on the back of higher capital expenditures, likely rise in the pension deficit, competition and high debt.

The company's net debt meanwhile is pegged to come in at ?5.0bn net of tax.

Thursday 07 May

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Mobeus Income & Growth 4 Vct

INTERIM EX-DIVIDEND DATE

James Halstead, Lok'n Store Group, Smart (J) & Co.

QUARTERLY PAYMENT DATE

BlackRock World Mining Trust, Scottish Inv Trust

QUARTERLY EX-DIVIDEND DATE

BP, Chenavari Toro Income Fund Limited NPV, Greencoat Renewables, INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION COM STK USD0.20 (CDI), Picton Property Income Ltd, SQN Secured Income Fund , Tufton Oceanic Assets Limited NPV

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Consumer Credit (US) (20:00)

Continuing Claims (US) (13:30)

Initial Jobless Claims (US) (13:30)

GMS

Rolls-Royce Holdings

FINALS

BT Group, Trainline

ANNUAL REPORT

Camellia

SPECIAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE

EP Global Opportunities Trust, San Leon Energy

EGMS

EIH Plc

AGMS

BAE Systems, Barclays, Condor Gold, Convatec Group , Costain Group, Empiric Student Property , Equiniti Group , F&C Investment Trust, Howden Joinery Group, IMI, Indivior, InterContinental Hotels Group, Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd (Singapore Reg), Jardine Strategic Holdings Ltd. (Singapore), John Laing Group , JPMorgan American Inv Trust, Melrose Industries, Mondi, Moneysupermarket.com Group, Morgan Advanced Materials , Morgan Sindall Group, National Express Group, OneSavings Bank, Provident Financial, Purecircle Limited (DI), Rathbone Brothers, Reach, Rolls-Royce Holdings, RSA Insurance Group, St James's Place, Unite Group, Wood Group (John)

TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS

Equiniti Group , Flutter Entertainment, InterContinental Hotels Group, Mondi, National Express Group, RSA Insurance Group, Superdry, TheWorks.Co.Uk

UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

BoE Interest Rate Decision (12:00)

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Anglo American, Hikma Pharmaceuticals, Johnson Service Group, Pearson, Rockrose Energy, Schroders, Schroders (Non-Voting)

FINAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Admiral Group, Aptitude Software Group , EP Global Opportunities Trust, Goco Group , Gresham House, Lancashire Holdings Limited, Ocean Wilsons Holdings Ltd., Polymetal International, Reach, Strix Group