Monday 1 April
– UK purchasing manager indices – manufacturing
“The recent downward momentum in the PMIs suggests the UK economy is bobbing along just above stall speed,” says AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould. This is in line with figures from the Office for Budget Responsibility’s of 1.2% GDP growth for 2019 followed by 1.4% for 2020.
The manufacturing PMI in particular could be bolstered by Brexit stockpiling, The Share Centre reckons.
– FCA ban on risk-free box profits – first proposed in the asset management market study – comes into force.
– Maximum compensation limit on Financial Ombudsman Service rises from £160,000 to £350,000
– Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) closes consultation seeking more DC schemes to invest in areas such as start-up companies, housing and green energy
Tuesday 2 April
– Nucleus full-year results
– Superdry shareholders decide whether to reinstall founder Julian Dunkerton on the board
– UK purchasing manager indices – construction
Wednesday 3 April
– UK purchasing manager indices – services
– Work and pensions select committee hears from Guy Opperman MP in its ongoing inquiry into pensions costs and transparency
Thursday 4 April
– Trading statement from Peppa Pig owner Entertainment One
Friday 5 April
– UK tax year ends
– US non-farm payrolls
“Analysts and investors will be scrutinising the jobs figures for any evidence of a slowdown in the US, due to uncertainty of trade and tariffs, a stronger dollar and weaker growth numbers from other important economies, notably China and Germany,” says Mould. However, the jobs numbers may have less influence than usual on monetary policy. This is because of the US Federal Reserve’s U-turn in January from “targeting further interest rate increases and the ongoing sterilisation of quantitative easing to putting rate hikes on hold and ending quantitative tightening in September”.
