UK Stocks-Factors to watch on May 3

By Reuters / May 03, 2017 / in.investing.com / Article Link

May 3 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening 13 points lower on Wednesday, according to financial bookmakers.

* BARCLAYS: Barclays BARC.L Chief Executive Jes Staley is involved in a dispute with private equity firm KKR & Co KKR.N, which is a client of the bank, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. EVRAZ: Evraz Plc EVRE.L , Russia's No. 2 steelmaker, signed an agreement with Kinder Morgan Inc (NYSE:KMI) KMI.N to supply about 250,000 metric tons of pipe to the U.S. pipeline company for the expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline. ITV: Broadcaster ITV ITV.L bought a majority stake in World Productions, the company behind the popular BBC series Line of Duty, for an undisclosed sum, The Times reported on Wednesday. OIL: Crude oil prices bounced back on Wednesday as a decline in U.S. inventories underpinned the market, although a dip in compliance with OPEC efforts to reduce output capped gains. COPPER: London copper dropped on Wednesday from a three-week high hit the session before as prices consolidated after failing to break technical resistance and given a lack of other drivers, traders said. GOLD: Gold prices fell to a three-week low on Tuesday, as demand for riskier assets drove stocks higher and the dollar hit a six-week peak against the yen. The UK blue chip index closed up 0.6 percent at 7,250.05 points on Tuesday, with well-received results from heavyweight BP BP.L helping to underpin gains in a positive start to the first trading day of the month. For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on: cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageId=livemarkets

* UK CORPORATE DIARY:

J D Wetherspoon Plc

JDW.L

Q3 2017 Trading Statement Release Focusrite Plc

TUNE.L

Half Year 2017 Earnings Release Sage Group Plc

SGE.L

Half Year 2017 Earnings Release Carillion Plc

CLLN.L

Q1 2017 Trading Statement Release Imperial Brands Plc

IMB.L

Half Year 2017 Earnings Release J Sainsbury (OTC:JSAIY) PLC