Friday is set to be fairly quiet in terms of company news, with only a couple of junior oilers –Providence Resources PLC (LON:PVR) and Rose Petroleum PLC (LON:ROSE) – due to report anything of any note.
Instead, much of the City’s attention will be on the latest two-day G20 meeting in Japan, which starts on Friday and continues into the weekend.
Sometimes what goes on behind the scenes at the G20 get-togethers is more important than what takes place and is seen in public, as was reportedly the case in 2016 when the so-called Shanghai Accord was struck to talk down the dollar and help stabilise global financial markets.
This time around, everyone will be looking to see if President Trump and President Xi Jinping can reach an agreement on trade, which looks as if it could be possible, given Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s comments.
After the last G20 meeting in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in November 2018, the US President said there would be a trade deal by March and otherwise he would slap extra tariffs on Chinese goods. That deal did not materialise but neither did the tariffs.
Financial markets are now hoping that Trump and Xi will reach a deal in Japan, not least because global economic data is looking spotty and central banks are getting edgy about growth.
“Investors will recall that equities rallied in the wake of the November G20, but then dropped sharply – there will be fears that a rerun of this is in the offing, particularly if Trump comes away from Osaka determined to impose a significant round of new tariffs on the Chinese economy,” said IG’s chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp.
“If anything is likely to drive the Fed towards a rate cut in July, it is an intensification of the US-China trade war.”
Significant events expected on Friday June 28:
Finals: Providence Resources PLC (PVR), Rose Petroleum PLC (LON:ROSE)
AGMs: Anglo African Oil & Gas PLC (LON:AAOG), HemoGenyx Pharmaceuticals PLC (LON:HEMO), Kore Potash PLC (LON:KP2), KRM22 PLC (LON:KRM), Tower Resources PLC (LON:TRP), W Resources PLC (LON:WRES)
Economic data: UK GfK consumer confidence; Nationwide house prices; UK quarterly GDP; US personal income/spending; US Chicago PMI; University of Michigan final consumer confidence survey