UPDATE 1-UK Stocks-Factors to watch on Dec 9

(Adds futures, news items)
Dec 9 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening 31 points
higher at 6,590 on Wednesday, according to financial bookmakers, with futures
FFIc1 up 0.5% ahead of cash market open.

* BAT: British American Tobacco BATS.L raised its forecast for 2020
revenue as the hit to cigarette demand from the COVID-19 pandemic was smaller
than feared. * STAGECOACH: Stagecoach SGC.L posted a 99% plunge in earnings due to the
pandemic stopping people travelling plus the expiry of previous contracts in the
six months to Oct. 31. * TESCO: Retailer Tesco TSCO.L said all conditions had been satisfied for
the $10.6 billion sale of its businesses in Thailand and Malaysia to C.P. Retail
Development Co. * BALFOUR BEATTY: Balfour Beatty BALF.L expects a 20% jump in its year-end
order book as the British government allowed construction work to begin on the
new high-speed rail line. * G4S: Security group G4S GFS.L on Tuesday agreed to be bought out by
Allied Universal for 3.8 billion pounds ($5.1 billion), picking the U.S. company
over Canadian rival GardaWorld. * BARCLAYS: Barclays Plc BARC.L on Tuesday promoted 84 employees to the
role of managing directors in corporate and investment banking, of which about
27% were women. * BREXIT: The European Union must move in the Brexit talks or it will be
very difficult for Britain to agree a trade deal, senior minister Michael Gove
said. * JOBS: British employers recruited fewer permanent staff during an
England-wide lockdown last month, and relied instead on temporary workers to
plug the gap, showed a monthly survey of recruiters. * OIL: Oil prices eased as an unexpected jump in U.S. oil inventories
fuelled concerns over slow demand. * The UK blue-chip index .FTSE closed 0.1% higher on Tuesday as Britain
and the European Union agreed on how to manage the Ireland-Northern Ireland
border, while investors awaited a wider post-Brexit trade deal. For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on:
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TODAY'S UK PAPERS
> Financial Times PRESS/FT
> Other business headlines PRESS/GB