What you need to know before the open
European markets are expected to open higher this morning, with more economic data to focus on today – although there are still concerns over Ukraine and growth in China.
The UK's Competition and Markets Authority has said it’s starting a new review into retail banking, focusing particularly on banking for SMEs.
Corporate news
Barratt Developments have appointed John Allan, chairman of Dixons, as chairman designate. He’ll join the board on 1 August.
London estate agents Foxtons has reported a pre-tax profit increase of 56.6 per cent to £38.9m in 2013. The firm’s now debt-free, after a successful IPO.
And insurance group Esure saw profit before tax rise 2.5 per cent to £118m last year, despite saying market conditions had been tough.
In Europe
German trade data for January showed exports were up 2.2 per cent and imports rose 4.1 per cent. The powerhouse country’s trade balance decreased to €17.2bn in the month.
Data in focus
- 9.30am: UK Jan industrial and manufacturing production
- 10.00am: inflation report hearings
- 2.00pm: US wholesale inventories
- 3.00pm: NIESR GDP estimate