UK Stocks-Factors to watch on May 21
21/05/2026 06:18
May 21 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening lower on Thursday, with futures FFIc1 down 0.04%. * GULF TRADE: Britain said it had secured a trade deal with the Gulf Cooperation Council worth $5 billion a year in the long run, deepening economic ties with allies in a region dealing with the fallout from the Iran war. * COST OF LIVING: British finance minister Rachel Reeves will set out measures to try to ease the cost of living, including free bus fares for children and possible reductions on some food tariffs. * AID FUNDING: Britain has allocated up to 20 million pounds ($26.87 million) in new aid funding to help contain an Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, the UK's Foreign Office said. * ATG ENTERTAINMENT: British West End theatre operator ATG Entertainment is in the early stages of being prepared for a possible sale by its private equity owner, four people familiar with the matter said. * EX-DIVS: Imperial Brands IMB.L and Bunzl BNZL.L will trade without entitlement to their latest dividend pay-out on Thursday. * COMMODITIES: Oil prices edged up on Thursday, while gold held steady, and Shanghai copper rose. * FTSE: UK shares closed higher on Wednesday after a softer-than-expected April inflation reading tempered some interest-rate-hike bets. * UK CORPORATE DIARY:
| Tate & Lyle | TATE.L | FY results |
| Easyjet | EZJ.L | HY results |
| BT group | BT.L | FY results |
| Sage Group | SGE.L | HY results |
| Close Brothers | CBRO.L | Q3 trading statement |
| Convatec | CTEC.L | Trading statement |
| Autotrader | AUTOA.L | FY results |
| AJ Bell | AJBA.L | HY results |
| Mitchells & Butlers | MAB.L | HY results |
| Young & Co | YNGa.L | FY results |
| Sabre Insurance | SBRE.L | AGM trading statement |
| LondonMetric | LMPL.L | FY results |
| Nationwide building | NBS.L | FY results |
| Qinetiq | QQ.L | FY results |
| Investec | INVP.L | FY results |