Housing, retail and US data will jostle for attention

Greene King, which owns the Loch Fyne chain, reports results. Picture: Ian Georgeson

The firm saw a 35 per cent rise in forward sales in the first quarter and a similarly buoyant figure is likely this time round, adding to pressure on the Bank of England to do more to curb a housing market which is arguably overheating in some parts of the UK.

The new month will also bring purchasing managers’ indices (PMIs) for the main components of the UK economy, but all eyes will be on a raft of data from the United States as markets nervously seek reassurance after America’s sharp first-quarter contraction.

WEEK AHEAD

Today

• Mortgage lending – Figures from the British Banking Association are forecast to show mortgage lending remained more or less flat in May.

• Edrington Group – The charitable trust–owned distiller of Macallan and Famous Grouse reveals full–year figures following a year in which whisky’s global growth stalled.

Tomorrow

• Manufacturing PMI – With little evidence of a slowdown in the last month, June’s purchasing managers’ survey is expected to show British industry continuing to expand at a robust pace. The reading for May  was 57.

• Bank of England – A record of the latest financial policy committee gathering will give a clue as to whether further measures to control the mortgage market are on the way, while monetary policy committee member Ben Broadbent speaks at the Adam Smith Institute.

Wednesday

• Persimmon – The housebuilder is one of the largest beneficiaries of the Help to Buy scheme and its shares rose last week amid relief that the Bank of England had not scaled back the scheme. Second–quarter results will provide an opportunity for it to comment on the measures the bank did take.

• Sports Direct – The retailer is due to make its third attempt to pass a bonus scheme for founder Mike Ashley at an investor meeting, though two shareholder groups have already spoken out against it.

• Construction PMI – Britain’s builders can be harder to predict than other sectors but the industry is still thought to be growing strongly after a PMI reading of 60 in May.

Thursday

• Poundland – The discount retailer is expected to post upbeat maiden results as a public company, with underlying earnings of around £52.6 million on sales of £988.5m. That is up from £45.5m in profits and sales of £880.5m a year before.

• Greene King – The pub chain and brewer will use its full–year results to lay out new plans for growth after it lost out on a key acquisition two months ago. The Bury St Edmunds-based group pulled out of a deal to buy 173 pubs from Orchid last month. They were later sold to rival Mitchells & Butlers.

• Services PMI – Service sector growth was revised down in official figures last week, but the PMI is likely to remain around the 58 mark.

Friday

• New car registrations – The consumer recovery should continue to aid the motor industry, with figures for the UK expected to show high single digit percentage growth.

• US holiday – Wall Street will close for Independence Day.