(Adds company news items and futures)
Aug 29 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening 17
points lower at 7,097
on Thursday, according to financial bookmakers, with futures FFIc1 down 0.34%
ahead of the cash market open.
* MICRO FOCUS: British IT group Micro Focus Intl MCRO.L said it would miss
its revenue target for the year, blaming weak sales that was compounded by a
deteriorating economic environment, and decided to speed up a review of its
operations. * ASTRAZENECA: AstraZeneca Plc AZN.L said its experimental drug to treat
moderate-to-severe lupus, anifrolumab, met its main goal in a late-stage study.
* CHESNARA: Pension and life insurance administrator Chesnara CSN.L said
it posted higher first-half profit as its Scildon business benefited from better
conditions in the investment market, but it warned low interest rates will
strain its cash generation. * HUNTING: British oilfield services firm Hunting Plc HTG.L posted a 6.6%
rise in first-half core profit, helped by strong demand for its equipment in the
United States. * BRITAIN-EU: Britain's Leader of the House of Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg said
lawmakers who want to stop a no-deal Brexit have two choices: change the law or
change the government, and if they fail to choose, Britain will leave the
European Union on Oct. 31. * BP: Operations were normal at BP Plc's BP.L 430,000-barrel-per-day (bpd)
Whiting, Indiana, refinery on Wednesday despite talk in Midwestern refined
products markets that at least one unit had been shut at the refinery, said
sources familiar with plant operations. * IAG: Ground crew of Spanish flag carrier Iberia, part of British Airways
owner International Airlines Group ICAG.L will go ahead with planned strikes
at Barcelona's El Prat airport on Aug. 30-31, trade union UGT said on Wednesday,
only a few hours after suggesting the stoppage could be called off. * Goldman Sachs-backed GS.N British broadband operator CityFibre has
tabled a bid for rival TalkTalk's TALK.L network company, FibreNation, Sky
News reported on Wednesday. * BREXIT: Deutsche Bank on Wednesday retained its estimate that there is a
50:50 chance Britain will crash out of the European Union without a deal with
Brussels following Prime Minister Boris Johnson's move to suspend parliament.
* BREXIT: A petition opposing Prime Minister Boris Johnson's decision to
suspend parliament for a month in the run-up to the planned Brexit date of Oct.
31 gained more than 450,000 signatures in a matter of hours after Johnson's
announcement. * BREXIT: Britain's deepening political crisis over its exit from the
European Union will weigh on London's blue-chip stocks index .FTSE well into
next year, as investors continue to steer clear of the region's assets,
according to a Reuters poll. * AUTOMOBILE: British new car production fell by an annual 10.6% in July,
the 14th consecutive month of declines due to weak demand in EU and Asian
markets and model changes, an industry body said on Thursday. * OIL: Oil prices fell for the first time in three days after San Francisco
Federal Reserve President Mary Daly sounded a note of concern about the strength
of U.S. economy. * GOLD: Gold prices eked out gains against the backdrop of recession fears,
with traders tracking signs of progress on the U.S.-China trade talks and global
central banks for direction on interest rates. * EX-DIVS: Auto Trader AUTOA.L , InterContinental Hotels IHG.L and St
James Place SJP.L will trade without entitlement to their latest dividend
pay-out on Thursday, trimming 0.8 points off the FTSE 100 according to Reuters
calculations. .L/XD
* Britain's Brexit-sensitive domestic stocks fell on Wednesday as renewed
worries about the country leaving the European Union without a deal pressured
sterling and sapped investor appetite for stocks sensitive to slowing consumer
spending. * For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on:
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