UK Stocks-Factors to watch on Feb 5

Feb 5 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening down 9 points, or 0.15 percent lower on Friday, according to financial bookmakers. For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on

  • The UK blue chip index closed 61.62 points higher on Thursday at 5898.76 as a drop in the dollar boosted commodity prices and gave a lift to mining and oil shares.
  • SHELL: British Columbia's ambitions to become North America's next major liquefied natural gas exporter took another hit on Thursday, as Royal Dutch Shell RDSa.L pushed back a final investment decision (FID) on its LNG Canada project to late 2016.
  • BHP BILLITON: Brazil's Minas Gerais state said on Thursday the November dam burst in an installation operated by miner Samarco, a joint venture between Vale SA VALE5.SA and BHP Billiton BLT.L , caused losses to municipalities estimated at 1.2 billion reais ($308 million), not considering the environmental problems.
  • CMC MARKETS: British financial spreadbetting firm CMC Markets is likely to price its London stock market listing at 240 pence a share, a bookrunner said on Thursday, after investors were told orders below that were likely to miss out. Trading is due to begin on Friday.
  • OIL: Crude oil futures were steady in lacklustre trading on Friday as Asian liquidity faded ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday across large parts of the region.
  • COPPER: London copper edged down on Friday, but was set for a third consecutive week of gains as signs of stabilisation in the market and a weaker dollar convinced traders to shut positions ahead of Lunar New Year holidays next week in China.
  • UK SALARY: British starting salaries for new permanent and temporary jobs rose last month at the slowest pace since October 2013, according to a survey on Friday which will do little to quell the Bank of England's unease about a slowdown in wage growth.
  • BREXIT: Britain will vote to stay in the EU by a "substantial margin" predicted the leader of a campaign to keep the world's fifth-largest economy in the trading bloc, slating the opposing "out" movement for what he said was failure to present an alternative to membership.
  • The Bank of England has not yet seen signs that British companies are curbing investment plans because of uncertainty around Britain's referendum on European Union membership, a top Bank of England official said on Friday.

  • UK CORPORATE DIARY: BG Group BG.L FY results Shaftesbury SHB.L Trading update


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