UK Stocks-Factors to watch on December 17 (updated)

Bakkavor

17/12/2025 07:56

Adds new items, updates futures

Dec 17 (Reuters) -
Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening higher on Wednesday, with futures FFIc1 up 0.7%.

* INFLATION: British consumer price
inflation
fell unexpectedly sharply to 3.2%
in November
, its lowest since March,
 from 3.6%
in October
, official figures showed.

* BUNZL: Bunzl BNZL.L forecast operating margin for 2026 to be slightly lower year-on-year, while it forecast 2025 profit to in line with expectations.

* SERCO: Serco SRP.L forecast profit ahead of analyst expectations for this year and next, boosted by a strong order book of defence contracts in the UK and North America.

* GREENCORE: Britain's competition regulator cleared the proposed 1.2 billion pound
merger
 between convenience food manufacturers Greencore  and Bakkavor BAKK.L, scrapping an in-depth probe into the companies.

*  ENQUEST: EnQuest  said it expects to meet or exceed the upper end of its 2025 output forecast of 40,000–45,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd).

* BAE SYSTEMS: Britain's BAE Systems BAES.L said it will cut its stake in Kazakh carrier Air Astana AIRA.KZ by nearly half.

* GSK: The U.S. FDA has approved GSK's GSK.L add-on treatment for severe asthma, offering a less frequently dosed option, but rejected its use for another condition, the drugmaker said.

* AIRTEL AFRICA: Airtel Africa  said it has partnered with SpaceX to introduce Starlink's direct-to-cell satellite technology to all its 14 markets.

* PAY: British employers plan to offer staff pay settlements averaging 3% next year, in line with the most recent agreements, after a temporary increase in the three months to October due to higher public sector pay deals, an industry survey showed.

* COMMODITIES:
Oil,
copper,
 and
gold
 rose on Wednesday.

* For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on: LIVE/

TODAY'S UK PAPERS
> Financial Times PRESS/FT
> Other business headlines PRESS/GB

 (Compiled by Neeshita Beura in Bengaluru)

 ((Neeshita.Beura@thomsonreuters.com))