The week ahead includes Bank of England and Federal Reserve decisions, plus results from the biggest companies in London and Europe, Shell and Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO), as well as the four largest from the US.
As we come to the end of January, the US earnings season sees heavyweight earnings from $3 trillion pair Microsoft and Apple, plus Alphabet, Amazon and Meta, along with updates from Boeing, Pfizer, Chevron and Exxon .
There are also plenty more from the UK, including two more from the FTSE 100 top 10, GSK and Diageo, plus others including BT, Pets at Home, Rank and Saga.
Monday 29 January
Companies due to report:
Trading updates: Hollywood Bowl Group PLC (LSE:BOWL), Innovation Group PLC
US earnings: F5 Networks, Nucor, Sofi and Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR)
AGMs: Hollywood Bowl Group PLC (LSE:BOWL), Landore Resources Ltd (AIM:LND)
Tuesday 30 January
Company previews:
Diageo PLC (LSE:DGE) will top up investors with the latest news two after November's Latin America-led profit warning led to the Guinness and Smirnoff maker's shares hitting a three-year low this month. Investors took heart from results from Remy Cointreau in the run-up to the results, but some analysts remain sceptical ...read the preview.
It's also been a couple of months since Pets at Home Group PLC (LSE:PETS) reported that a big bite had been taken out of its profits, although this was from investing in its digital shift. A third-quarter update could show investors if this is reaping rewards on the top line … read the preview.
Tuesday is a big day for US mega-techs, with the array of earnings including Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), where achieving a $3 trillion market cap and a cull to its gaming division were offered up as starters in the week ahead of the results ...read the preview.
Google parent Alphabet Inc is also riding high in anticipation of next week’s earnings call, one of several of of the 'Magnificent Seven' tech stocks pushing new all-time highs in recent days ...read the preview.
Others due to report:
Trading updates: Diaceutics PLC (AIM:DXRX), Luceco PLC (LSE:LUCE), Renewi PLC, Saga PLC (LSE:SAGA), SSP Group plc (LSE:SSPG), Synthomer (LSE:SYNT) PLC
Interims: Kromek Group PLC (AIM:KMK), Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies Holdings PLC (LSE:OCTP, OTC:OCTHF)
Finals: SThree PLC (LSE:STEM)
US earnings: AMD, Electronic Arts, General Motors Co, Mondelez Inc, Pfizer Inc (NYSE:PFE), Snap Inc (NYSE:SNAP) , Starbucks Corp (NASDAQ:SBUX)
AGMs: AJ Bell PLC (LSE:AJB), Auction Technology Group PLC (LSE:ATG), Mineral & Financial Investments Ltd (AIM:MAFL), Renew Holdings (AIM:RNWH) PLC, SSP Group plc (LSE:SSPG), Webis Holdings (AIM:WEB) PLC
Economic announcements: Nationwide House Price Index (UK), M4 Money Supply (UK), Mortgage Approvals (UK), BRC Shop Price Index (UK), House Price Index (US), Consumer Confidence (US), GDP (EU)
Wednesday 31 January
Company previews:
Followers of big pharma are likely to be keen to hear from GSK and Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO) on Wednesday, while later on the Federal Reserve meeting will be in focus.
Analysts at UBS waxed optimistic about the UK group in the run-up to results, underpinned by projections for its Shingrix shingles vaccine, driven by a new market opportunity in China ...read more.
As for Novo, its Ozempic weight-loss drug has transformed the Danish company from an also-ran to Europe's largest drug company but other me-too rivals are waiting in the wings ...read more.
In the US, Fed head Jerome Powell will announce the central bank's latest decision, which is widely predicted to see rates left unchanged and some push-back against forecasts of a March cut ...read the macro preview.
In the news for all the wrong reasons lately, earnings from aeroplane maker Boeing Inc could be interesting. Ahead of the update, the US aviation regulator capped production of the 737 Max 9s plane following a mid-flight door blowout earlier this month ...read more.
Others due to report:
Interims: ITM Power PLC (AIM:ITM), NWF Group PLC (AIM:NWF)
Finals: Abrdn Private Equity Opportunities Trust PLC, Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust PLC
US earnings: Automatic Data Processing Inc (NASDAQ:ADP, ETR:ADP), Boeing Co (NYSE:BA, ETR:BCO), Mastercard Inc (NYSE:MA), Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) Inc, Qualcomm Inc
AGMs: Imperial Brands Group, Mobile Streams, Oxford Metrics (AIM:OMG) PLC, Schroder Asia Pacific Fund, Smiths News PLC (LSE:SNWS)
Economic announcements: MBA Mortgage Applications (US), Employment Cost Index (US), Chicago PMI (US), Crude Oil Inventories (US)
Thursday 01 February
Company previews:
On Thursday, the Bank of England is, like its US counterpart, expected to keep interest rates unchanged. Some economists see the MPC sticking to its hawkish message, while others predict a big signal could be sent that it could be time to talk about rate cuts soon …read the preview.
Ahead of results from Shell PLC (LSE:SHEL, NYSE:SHEL) analysts have praised the new management's increased focus on competitiveness, discipline and costs – while the main focus in results may be cash allocation plans ...read the preview.
Quarterly numbers from BT Group PLC (LSE:BT.A) will coincide with the first day for new chief executive Allison Kirkby ...read the preview.
Casino and bingo hall owner Rank Group PLC (LSE:RNK) will provide an update on its post-pandemic turnaround which has proved more challenging than expected ...read the preview.
It's a busy day stateside too, led by Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL, ETR:APC) a day ahead of the much-anticipated release of its Vision Pro, which analysts see as a major potential revenue driver ...read more.
Meta Platfoms Inc is another among those reporting earnings and one that's expected to follow up on a strong 2023 with more growth ...read the preview.
Others due to report:
Trading updates: Airtel Africa PLC (LSE:AAF), Anglo American PLC (LSE:AAL), Barr PLC, BT Group PLC (LSE:BT.A), TClarke PLC, JTC PLC (LSE:JTC)
Interims: Rank Group PLC (LSE:RNK)
Finals: Shell PLC (LSE:SHEL, NYSE:SHEL)
US earnings: Ball Corp (NYSE:BALL), Merck & Co Inc (NYSE:MRK), Takeda Pharmaceutical Co, Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN, ETR:AMZ), Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL, ETR:APC), Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:FB)
AGMs: Cerillion PLC (AIM:CER), Keystone Positive Change Investment Trust PLC, Sage Group PLC
Economic announcements: PMI Manufacturing (UK), BoE Interest Rate Decision (UK), Continuing Claims (US), Initial Jobless Claims (US), PMI Manufacturing (US), Construction Spending (US), ISM Manufacturing (US), ISM Prices Paid (US), Auto Sales (US)
Friday 02 February
Friday's diary is quiet for the UK, but there are a few earnings scheduled in the US and the jobs report could be the big macro news of the week.
Others due to report:
US earnings: AbbVie Inc, Aon PLC (NYSE:AON), Bristol-Myers Squibb Co (NYSE:BMY, ETR:RM, OTC:BMYMP), Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX, ETR:CHV), ExxonMobil Corp
AGMs: Critical Metals PLC (LSE:CRTM), Gunsynd PLC (LSE:GUN)
Economic announcements: Non-Farm Payrolls (US), Unemployment Rate (US), Factory Orders (US), University of Michigan Confidence (US)