Wednesday preview: Services sector PMIs, Smurfit Kappa in the spotlight

Financial markets' attention will shift towards services sector activity around the globe, with purchasing managers' surveys due out in the US, UK and euro area.

Also set for release is consultancy ADP's private sector payrolls number for January, at 1315 GMT.

Among the corporates set to update investors on Wednesday meanwhile is Smurfit Kappa.

UBS expects the containerboard packaging specialist to post 4.0% rise in fourth quarter sales versus a year ago to reach €2.456bn with adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation pegged at €420.0m.

Analyst Mikael Doepel estimated that consensus was forecasting quarterly EBITDA of €373.0m, which would make for a 10.0% drop year-on-year.

Nevertheless, for 2020, Doepel was anticipating a 5% decline in EBITDA and a 0.7 percentage point contraction in the company's margins, having recently cut his estimate for indexed box prices in 2020 from down by 3.2% to -5.0%.

Wednesday 05 February

INTERIMS

Barratt Developments, Frontier Developments

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Ashtead Group, Brown (N.) Group, Halma, Vianet Group, Volex, Workspace Group

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Balance of Trade (US) (13:30)

Crude Oil Inventories (US) (15:30)

ISM Non-Manufacturing (US) (15:00)

MBA Mortgage Applications (US) (12:00)

PMI Composite (EU) (09:00)

PMI Composite (GER) (08:55)

PMI Composite (US) (14:45)

PMI Services (EU) (09:00)

PMI Services (GER) (08:55)

PMI Services (US) (14:45)

Retail Sales (EU) (10:00)

Q4

GlaxoSmithKline

FINALS

Smurfit Kappa Group

EGMS

Matomy Media Group Limited (DI)

AGMS

Artemis VCT, Daily Mail and General Trust A (Non.V), Future, JPMorgan Indian Investment Trust, Premier Miton Group, Ten Lifestyle Group

TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS

Vodafone Group

UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

PMI Services (09:30)

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Britvic, Netcall, Schroder Asia Pacific Fund, UDG Healthcare Public Limited Company