Week Ahead: investors await answers over Ukraine plane crash
As world leaders demand an investigation into the shooting down of a passenger plane in the Ukraine, the geopolitical consequences of the tragedy will be at the forefront of investors' minds ahead of a nervous week for markets.
Even before Thursday's shock news, tensions between Russia and the West had already taken their toll on global markets. US sanctions against Russia over what the world's largest economy claims is Moscow's failure to curb separatist violence in eastern Ukraine had led to markets around the world falling into the red.
News of the plane crash led to further nervousness among investors, but with so many questions about the shooting still unanswered, they may continue to adopt a bearish approach until more is known.
Moscow and Kiev have blamed each other for the crash, while the US has linked its remarks on the disaster to the Kremlin's support for separatists in the Ukraine.
'Events in Ukraine and Gaza may have changed stock market dynamics, at least temporarily. Previously the thought process was to buy every dip, now it's just to sit tight until more data from the MH17 crash site is released, said Jasper Lawler, market analyst at CMC Markets UK.
Against this backdrop, the big economic news of the week will be growth figures for the UK in the second quarter. Analysts at Investec are expecting a 0.8% reading to be delivered on Friday, in line with growth in the first quarter.
'As rate hike talk hots up ahead of the August inflation report and monetary policy committee meeting, the pace of growth in the UK will be eyed even more keenly than normal as analysts look to pinpoint how quickly economic slack is being eroded and therefore how soon the Bank of England will be prompted to tighten policy,' he said.
'Flash' purchasing manager's index figures for the eurozone will give a guide as to how the region has responded to the European Central Bank's stimulus measures, while more clues on when the US will raise rates will come from inflation data to be published on Tuesday.
FTSE Diary
Companies and investment trusts due to provide financial updates this week:
Monday: Babcock trading statement, Schroder Reit earnings, Dialight interim 2014 earnings;
Tuesday: Croda International interim 2014 earnings, Beazley interim 2014 earnings, Royal Mail trading statement, Qinetiq first quarter trading statement, ARM Holdings second quarter 2014 earnings, Petropavlovsk second quarter 2014 trading statement, Premier Foods half-year 2014 earnings, IG Group full-year 2014 earnings;
Wednesday: Sage third quarter 2014 trading statement, Johnson Matthey first quarter 2014 trading statement, BHP Billiton June 2014 operational review, Hogg Robinson trading statement, TalkTalk Telecomm first quarter 2014 trading statement, Carphone Warehouse first quarter 2014/15 trading statement, Morgan Advanced Materials first-half 2014 earnings, Capita 2014 half-year earnings, Brewin Dolphin trading statement, Intermediate Capital trading statement, Renishaw preliminary 2013/14 earnings, PayPoint first quarter 2014 trading statement, Provident Financial interim 2014 earnings, GlaxoSmithKline second quarter 2014 earnings;
Thursday: SABMiller first quarter trading statement, Kingfisher second quarter 2014 pre-close update, Hammerson half-year 2014 earnings, Hansard Global fourth quarter 2013/14 new business results, Rathbone Brothers interim 2014 earnings, Shaftesbury trading update, CSR second quarter 2014 earnings, Reed Elsevier interim 2014 earnings, Tate & Lyle trading statement, Lonmin third quarter trading statement, Close Brothers pre-close full-year trading update, Howden Joinery interim 2014 earnings, Martson's trading statement, Halma trading statement, The Paragaon Group of Companies third quarter 2014 trading statement, Britvic third quarter trading statement, Unilever second quarter 2014 earnings, Electrocomponents trading statement, EasyJet third quarter 2014 trading statement, Lancashire Holdings second quarter 2014 earnings;
Friday: Vodafone trading statement, United Utilities trading statement, Anglo American earnings, British Sky Broadcasting fourth quarter 2013/14 earnings, Cable & Wireless first quarter 2014/15 trading statement, Aberforth interim 2014 earnings, Pearson interim 2014 earnings, Spectris half-year 2014 earnings, AG Barr pre-close trading update, Alliance Trust interim 2014 earnings, African Barrick Gold half-year 2014 earnings.
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