Week in Review: FTSE 100 sinks in disappointing day for European markets

FTSE NEWS

The FTSE 100 dipped 0.75% lower to 5,999.99 on Thursday (27 August) in what was a disappointing day for European markets. Germany’s Dax and France’s CAC 40 also ended the day down, by 0.71% and 0.64%, respectively.

• Monday (31 August) is a Bank Holiday in the UK and therefore the London Stock Exchange is closed.
• The Government begins to taper its support for workers through its furlough scheme from Tuesday (1 September). From then it will pay a maximum of £2,190 a month to furloughed workers, down from £2,500. It has been argued this could have a knock-on effect for company profits.
• The FTSE carries out its latest quarterly review on Wednesday (2 September). It will be announced which firms will leave and enter the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 after markets close.
• On Thursday (3 September), CIPS/Markit releases the latest PMI data for the services industry.
• Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee external member Michael Saunders gives a speech on the state of the economy on Friday (4 September).

SECTOR IN FOCUS

The hospitality sector is showing signs of recovery, aided in part by the Government’s generous Eat Out to Help Out scheme, new figures reveal.
Data from event booking platform VenueScanner show there has been a 267% leap in venue bookings between April and July.
Along with the airline industry, the hospitality sector has arguably been one the sectors most affected by coronavirus.
However, the Government gave restaurants a welcome boost by offering to subsidise 50% discount scheme for diners.
The scheme, which is coming to an end this month, has been hailed as a lifeline to struggling restaurant and food businesses during coronavirus.
Despite that, the hospitality sector is still crying out for more clarity on what types of events can take place, Rebecca Kelly, CEO of VenueScanner said.

ECONOMIC UPDATE

Economists believe the UK could be on course for a record-breaking economic recovery in the third quarter as a result of increased household spending.
The UK suffered the worst economic slump of any member of the G7 of developed nations in the second quarter due to its lengthy lockdown.
However, an average of forecasts by City economists suggests GDP could jump 14.3% in Q3, reversing much of the 20.4% fall in Q2.
Such an increase would make it the best-performing country in the G7 for the quarter, it has been predicted.
Despite this, economists say it is difficult to forecast the long-term health of the economy at this stage in the pandemic.

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COMPANY ANNOUNCEMENTS

2 September – Housebuilders are currently enjoying the rapid rebound in property sales since the market reopened. That said, they are not out of the woods yet. Barratt Developments plc’s (BDEV) full-year results, published on Wednesday (2 September), will reveal what sort of state it and the wider property market are in post-lockdown.

3 September – Melrose Industries plc (MRO), the parent company of aerospace engineer GKN, fell to a loss in the second quarter as it shelved its interim dividend and warned of job losses. It has cut a deal with its banks ahead of its interims on Thursday (3 September).