With little in the way of major corporate news, economic indicators or interest rate-setting meetings on the agenda this week as well as the US Thanksgiving holiday, most attention will focus on whether equities can continue their remarkable recovery of recent weeks. While there is a feeling that the Irish market, and especially the big banks, have further ground to gain, the market's tendency to follow global trends could see it suffer if the impetus behind the recent charge slows. There is still a residual doubt that a plethora of profit warnings and earnings downgrades could stifle the market's renewed optimism.
Anglo Irish Bankcorp: An aggressive play for increased market share in its niche small and medium-sized business market is likely to pay dividends for Anglo Irish when it reports full-year figures tomorrow. The phenomenal success of its target group in the last year should see it comfortably attain the 45 per cent increase in pretax profit to £44 million pencilled in by Davy Stockbrokers.
Monday
Results: Allen (H1), Cambridge Antibody Technologies, Christian Salvesen (H1), Chrysalis, Ferraris Group, Goldshield Group (H1), Grantchester, Hewetson (H1), Liberfabrica (H1), Maelor (H1), Majestic Wine (H1), Quadramatic (H1), RM (H1), Siebe (H1), Southnews (H1), South Staffs Water (H1), South West Water (H1), TBI (H1), Unidare, Yeoman.
Meetings: European Union finance ministers meet (Brussels).
Others: IBEC publishes childcare strategy document.
Tuesday
Results: Airtours, Anglian Group (H1), Anglo Irish Bankcorp, Athlone Extrusions, Caffyns (H1), Chloride Group (H1), Cosalt, Eidos (H1), EMI (H1), Johnson Matthey (H1), McLeod Russeol, National Grid (H1), Real Time Control (H1), Severn Trent (H1), Trifast (H1), Vocalis (H1), VTech (H1), Wynnstay (H1).
A.G.M.: Diageo (e.g.m.).
Meetings: EU budget ministers meet (Brussels); Jane Williams, managing director, Commencements is guest speaker at the latest Irish Permanent Women in Business seminar (Davenport Hotel, Dublin).
Indicators: US real GDP (Q3), implicit deflator (Q3), price index (Q3) consumer confidence (Nov) and durable goods orders (Oct).
Others: Presentation of National Enterprise Awards by junior minister, Mr Noel Treacy (Moran's Red Cow Hotel, Dublin); Chartered Accountants Published Accounts Awards (Burlington Hotel, Dublin); FBD Insurance/`Checkout' supermarket of the year awards (Shelbourne Hotel, Dublin).
Wednesday
Results: Abacus Polar, Advanced Power Components, Baldwin Industrial Services (H1), Banner Chemicals (H1), Bristol Water Holdings (H1), Granada Group, IWP, Jennings Bros, National Power (H1), NHP, Radstone Technology (H1), Tate & Lyle, Victoria (H1).
A.G.M.: BP (e.g.m.).
Meetings: EU telecoms ministers meet (Brussels); The WTO's dispute settlement Body meets and is likely to face issue of EU/US banana row.
Indicators: British visible trade (Sep); US personal income/spending (Oct), Michigan Sentiment Survey (Nov), New York NAPM (Nov), existing home sales (Oct), help wanted index (Oct) and weekly jobs and monetary data; French consumer prices (Oct).
Others: Cable Management Ireland introduce Cablenet, a new high-speed Internet service; Irish Association of Corporate Treasurers' annual treasury awards (Telecom Eireann head office, Dublin).
Thursday
Results: 3i Group (H1), BPB (H1), Bristol United Press (H1), Brockhampton (H1), Comino (H1), CPL Aromas (H1), DBS Management (H1), ING (Q3), Merrydown (H1), Mid Kent Holdings (H1), Pennon Group (H1), Sedgemoor (H1), William Ransom & Son (H1), Southern Electric (H1), Symonds (H1), Waddington (H1), Yorkshire Waterworks (H1), Yorkshire Water (H1).
Meetings: American Chamber of Commerce Ireland business lunch addressed by Labour party leader Ruairi Quinn (Conrad Hotel, Dublin).
Indicators: Irish industrial production (Aug); British CBI monthly trends survey (Nov); Japanese industrial production (Oct) and retail sales (Oct); French GDP (Q3), consumer spending (Oct) and industrial production (Nov).
Others: British Prime Minister addresses both houses of Oireachtas; US public holiday for Thanksgiving; SIMI annual conference (O'Reilly Hall, UCD).
Friday
Results: Oriental Restaurant (H1), Touchstone (H1), VTR.
A.G.M.: Leicester City.
Meetings: ACCA lunch addressed by former British foreign secretary Douglas Hurd (Shelbourne Hotel, Dublin).
Indicators: Japanese unemployment (Oct); French unemployment (Oct).
Others: Paris Bourse SBF holds meeting with heads of major European bourses over the creation of a pan-European stock market.
