(Adds futures, updates news items)
Dec 18 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is expected to open 2
points lower at 7,524 on Wednesday, according to financial bookmakers, with
futures FFIc1 down 0.1% ahead of the cash market open.
* NMC HEALTH PLC: NMC Health Plc NMC.L reaffirmed its forecasts for 2019
and 2020, a day after a report from U.S. short-selling firm Muddy Waters wiped a
third off the value of the healthcare group's market value. * STANDARD CHARTERED: Standard Chartered STAN.L has pulled financing for
three coal-fired power plants in Southeast Asia amid a global push to cut
greenhouse gas emissions, throwing into doubt projects worth an estimated $7
billion and piling pressure on the coal industry. * STAFFLINE GROUP: British recruitment company Staffline Group Plc STAF.L
lowered its full-year adjusted operating profit forecast, due to
softer-than-anticipated hiring from its customers in the fourth quarter.
* PEARSON: British education company Pearson PSON.L said it would sell its
remaining 25% stake in publisher Penguin Random House to partner Bertelsmann,
generating net proceeds of about $675 million. * BHP: Global miner BHP Group BHP.AX BHPB.L is feeling its way back into
commodities trading, making a dedicated hire to help it manage a base metals
book in Singapore as it seeks to boost returns and manage transaction risk, two
people with knowledge of the matter said. * BAT: British American Tobacco (BAT) BATS.L must stop advertising its
e-cigarettes from any public account on Instagram, including influencers'
accounts, the UK's advertising watchdog ruled. * METRO BANK: Metro Bank MTRO.L said on Tuesday Vernon Hill, the founding
chairman of the struggling British lender, had stepped down as a non-executive
director. * GOLD: Gold prices were largely subdued , with investors awaiting more
details on U.S.-China trade deal, while palladium retreated from last session's
record peak. * OIL: Oil retreated after rising more than 1% in the previous session as
U.S. industry data showed a surprise build in crude stocks, but hopes for firmer
demand next year checked a deeper fall in prices. * The UK blue-chip index eked out a 0.1% gain on Tuesday, lifted by
trade-sensitive stocks amid optimism about a proper trade agreement between
China and the United States. * For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on:
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