UPDATE 1-UK Stocks-Factors to watch on March 23

(Adds company news items and futures)
March 23 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is
seen opening down 379 points on Monday, according to financial
bookmakers, with futures down 4.13% ahead of cash market open.
* PEARSON: British publisher Pearson PSON.L said it would
halt share buybacks as it predicted a 25 million pounds to 35
million pounds hit to operating profit this year due to the
coronavirus-driven closure of many of its academic testing
centres. * KINGFISHER/A.G. BARR: Home improvement group Kingfisher
KGF.L and soft drinks firm A.G. Barr said they would delay
publication of their full-year results for at least two weeks,
heeding a call from the financial markets regulator on Saturday.
* SHELL: Oil major Shell RDSa.L lowered capital
expenditure for 2020 by about $5 billion and suspended the next
tranche of its share buyback plan, as the company tries to
weather a hit from the recent oil price crash. * ITV: ITV ITV.L , Britain's biggest commercial free-to-air
broadcaster, said advertisers across all categories were
deferring campaigns, and the rapidly changing situation meant it
could not guide to ad sales or forecast its outcome for the
year. * PRIMARK: Primark is closing all of its stores, a loss of
roughly 650 million pounds worth of net sales a month, and will
stop placing new orders with suppliers, its parent company said
as the coronavirus outbreak deepens. * BYOTROL: Hand sanitizer-maker Byotrol BYOT.L said there
was a substantial increase in demand for a range of its
infection prevention products amid the coronavirus health crisis
and expects better-than-expected results. * GOLD: Gold prices fell on Monday as investors stockpiled
cash, with a rising numbers of coronavirus-led national
lockdowns threatening to overshadow stimulus measures from
global central banks to combat the economic damage. * OIL: Oil prices fell on Monday as governments escalated
lockdowns to curb the virus outbreak that has slashed the demand
outlook for oil and threatened a global economic contraction.
* The UK blue-chip index .FTSE closed up 0.8% on Friday as
investors pinned hopes on more stimulus actions. For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please
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