For hundreds of thousands of small shareholders, this may be the week when they finally learn the fate of their Eircom investment. It seems certain that Sir Anthony O'Reilly's Valentia consortium has played a winning hand in tying Comsource into its new bid up to an offer of #1.50 a share.
The question now seems to be when, rather than if, Mr Denis O'Brien's eIsland group leaves the field.
Cisco Systems: Corporate news holds centre stage this week, particularly the fourth quarter figures from technology giant Cisco Systems tomorrow. Interest lies not so much in the figures themselves, which are not expected to produce any surprises, but in the company's outlook. News that the company might be preparing to give a bullish report on trading in the current quarter was sufficient to give the market a boost last week but, for every optimist, there is a bear. Analysts will be looking for any sign of the bottoming out of the technology slump referred to last week by Intel.
Elsewhere: At home, Ulster Bank and Ryanair are both likely to post healthy figures when they too unveil figures for the six months and three months respectively. Others reporting during the week include e-learning group Riverdeep, which reports full-year figures on Thursday, and Galen Holdings, which announces third quarter results a day earlier.
On the economic front, the United States will again be the focus with markets closely watching US consumer confidence figures tomorrow. Closer to home Irish inflation data will be published on Friday, giving a clearer idea of the state of the economy.
And in Britain, the Bank of England publishes its quarterly inflation bulletin which may help explain the reasoning behind last week's surprise rate cut.
MONDAY
Results: Aventis (Q2), British Airways (Q1), HSBC (H1), Inchcape (H1), Rok Property Solutions (H1), Ultra Electronics (H1).
A.G.M.: Cairngorm Euro Fin, Schroder UK Growth Fund.
Indicators: British manufacturing output (Jun) and industrial production (Jun); German manufacturing new orders (Jun).
Others: Bank holiday in Ireland.
TUESDAY
Results: Adidas (H1), BASF (H1), BP (Q2), Cisco Systems, Dmatek (H1), Metso (Q2), Nycomed/Amersham (H1), Pohjola (Q2), Procter & Gamble, Royal Bank of Scotland (H1), Ryanair (Q1), Ulster Bank (H1).
A.G.M.: Atkins (WS), Internet Music & Media, Range Cooker Company.
Indicators: US consumer credit (Jun); German unemployment (Jul), manufacturing (Jun) and industrial production (Jun).
WEDNESDAY
Results: BOC (Q3), Datalex (Q2), Galen Holdings (Q3), Goffs, Rotork (H1), SAS (Q2), Sandvik (Q2), Skandia (Q2).
A.G.M.: Ashquay Group (e.g.m.), Clarity Commerce, Perry Group (e.g.m.).
Indicators: US Beige Book (Jul); German consumer prices (Jul).
Others: Bank of England's monetary policy committee publishes quarterly inflation report.
THURSDAY
Results: Aegon (H1), Bayer (H1), Carlsberg (H1), Colt Telecom (Q2), Commerzbank (H1), Conduit (Q1), Dresdner Bank (Q2), Elsevier (H1), Riverdeep, TNT Post Group.
A.G.M.: Anglo Siberian Oil (e.g.m.), Body Shop International (e.g.m.), Dart Group, Dewhurst Group (e.g.m.), Finsbury Worldwide.
Indicators: US import/export prices (Jul); Italian industrial production (Jun) and GDP (Q2); German retail sales (Jun).
FRIDAY
Results: Kempen (H1).
A.G.M.: E-Prime Financial (e.g.m.), Interative Investor (e.g.m.), Millwall Holdings (e.g.m.), Orchard Furniture (e.g.m.).
Indicators: Irish consumer prices (Jul) and national income/expenditure 2000; US producer prices (Jun); German current account (Jun), wholesale prices (Jul) and trade balance (Jun).
Others: International Energy Agency publishes monthly oil market report.
