Dec 19 - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is expected to open 14 points
higher at 7,555 on Thursday, according to financial bookmakers.
* WOODFORD: Veteran British money manager Neil Woodford is now looking to
expand his presence in China, a person familiar with the matter said on
Wednesday, months after he was forced to suspend his flagship equity fund.
* ANTOFAGASTA: Chile's Antofagasta ANTO.L said on Wednesday that it had
kicked off the environmental permitting process for its $1.7 billion Twin Metals
copper, nickel and platinum mining project in the United States after the Trump
administration overturned an Obama-era decision to protect a nearby wilderness
area.
* HSBC: The banking arm of French mail operator La Poste LAPST.UL is
exploring a bid for HSBC HSBA.L France's retail activities as part of its
diversification efforts, sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
* IAG: British Airways parent company IAG ICAG.L urged Prime Minister
Boris Johnson and his new government on Wednesday to conduct an independent
assessment into Heathrow airport expansion plans. * BANKS: Bank of England Deputy Governor Sam Woods said on Wednesday he
would meet banks in the first quarter of 2020 to check on whether regulations
are hampering their ability to ditch the use of the Libor interest rate
benchmark. * EX-DIVS: Burberry BRBY.L and United Utilities UU.L will trade without
entitlement to their latest dividend pay-out on Thursday, trimming 0.6 points
off the FTSE 100 according to Reuters calculations * The UK blue chip index added 0.2% on its sixth day of gains on Wednesday ,
its longest winning streak since June, outperforming European peers thanks to
gains in exporter stocks, which benefited from a weaker pound and helped
overpower losses in domestically-exposed housebuilders. UK CORPORATE DIARY: None
* For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on:
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