Market Watch: Analysts seek signs of confidence

FURTHER pointers on consumer confidence will be provided this week when food groups Thorntons and Premier Foods update the market along with betting giant Ladbrokes.

Chocolatier Thorntons is likely to reveal how much the snow chaos in December wiped off its profits when it reports half-year results on Wednesday.

It has already said that the freezing weather cost it 3.5 million in lost sales in the key Christmas trading period, although it gave no estimate for how badly profits were hit.

The retailer has been fighting rising commodity prices, such as cocoa, butter and sugar, which have all soared in the past year. It put up prices on a small number of lines in November but has generally looked to take costs out of the business by changing pack sizes and products.

Hovis-to-Mr Kipling firm Premier Foods is expected to reveal a decline in profits on Tuesday as the firm battles intense competition in the grocery market.

The UK's biggest food manufacturer (shares in which nearly halved in value in 2010) is forecast to report a 2 per cent decline in trading profits to 303m in the year. The results are expected to reveal an improvement on the first half of the year when trading profits declined by 6 per cent.

The company recently sold some of its best known brands in a bid to drive down its debt mountain.

The disposals, which will not affect the 2010 figures, have driven Premier's debts down to below 1 billion, which Julian Hardwick, an analyst at Royal Bank of Scotland, said left the company with a balance sheet that investors would see as "comfortable". He also expects Premier's sales to show a drop of 3.3 per cent in 2010, which is an improvement on the 4.4 per cent decline reported in the first three-quarters.

The City will be looking for an update on bookmaker Ladbrokes' plans to buy online gambling firm 888 Holdings when it publishes its final results on Thursday. Both sides have confirmed talks are going ahead but reports have suggested the discussions have hit difficulties over the proposed price.

Embattled sportswear firm JJB Sports will seek approval for its plans to raise 31.5m when it holds a special meeting of shareholders on Friday.