Oct 8 - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening 13 points higher at
5,959 on Thursday, according to financial bookmakers.
* ASTRAZENECA: AstraZeneca AZN.L could start profiting from its COVID-19
vaccine as soon as July next year, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday,
citing a memo showing the British drugmaker can declare when it considers the
pandemic to have ended. * BRITISH AIRWAYS: British Airways will bid farewell to its final
London-based Boeing 747s on Thursday with a rare synchronised dual take off for
the "Queen of the Skies", the jet which brought long-haul flights to the masses.
* EASYJET: British airline easyJet Plc EZJ.L has signalled to the
government that it may need further financial support if the coronavirus
pandemic continues to hinder its schedule, Sky News reported on Wednesday.
* OIL: Oil prices inched up on Thursday as oil workers evacuated rigs in the
U.S. Gulf of Mexico ahead of Hurricane Delta, though fuel demand concerns
persisted on fading chances for a U.S. economic stimulus deal and a build in
U.S. crude inventories. * GOLD: Gold prices were little changed on Thursday as renewed hopes for
more U.S. stimulus kept the bullion afloat, with investors eyeing the weekly
jobless claims data to further gauge the health of the world's largest economy.
* The UK blue-chip index .FTSE closed down 0.06% on Wednesday, weighed
down by a fall in energy stocks on lower oil prices, with investors looking for
clues on U.S. stimulus measures after President Donald Trump called a halt to
talks with Congress on a comprehensive bill. UK CORPORATE DIARY:
Imperial Brands Plc IMB.L Preclose trading statement
Electrocomponents Plc ECM.L Trading statement
Newriver REIT Plc NRRT.L Operational Update
CMC Markets Plc CMCX.L Q2 preclose trading statement
Easyjet Plc EZJ.L Q4 trading statement
Hargreaves Lansdown Plc HRGV.L Trading statement
Unite Group Plc UTG.L Trading statement
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