March 23 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening down 379 points on Monday, according to financial bookmakers.
* TESCO: Britain's market-leading supermarket chain Tesco TSCO.L said on Friday it would hire 20,000 people to work in its stores for at least the next 12 weeks to cope with an unprecedented increase in demand for food and household products. TED BAKER: Troubled fashion retailer Ted Baker Plc TED.L said on Friday it has shut businesses that accounted for about 38% of its global retail sales in 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak. BP: A 160,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) refinery owned by BP Plc BP.L and Husky Energy HSE.TO in Toledo, Ohio has shut a 3,000 bpd alkylation unit, according to a source familiar with plant operations. ABF: Associated British Foods Plc ABF.L intends to close its 189 Primark stores in the United Kingdom from Sunday night after cancelling all new orders from suppliers as demand shrinks due to the virus outbreak, the Financial Times reported. RICHARD BRANSON: British entrepreneur Richard Branson said on Sunday companies in his Virgin empire will be investing $250 million in coming weeks and months to save jobs from the impact of the coronavirus outbreak. GOLD: Gold prices fell on Monday as investors stockpiled cash, with a rising numbers of coronavirus-led national lockdowns threatening to overshadow stimulus measures from global central banks to combat the economic damage. OIL: Oil prices fell on Monday as governments escalated lockdowns to curb the virus outbreak that has slashed the demand outlook for oil and threatened a global economic contraction. The UK blue-chip index .FTSE closed up 0.8% on Friday as UK shares managed to end a tumultuous week in positive territory on Friday, as investors pinned hopes on more stimulus actions. UK CORPORATE DIARY:
Pennant
FY Results International
Group
NMC Health PLC
Q4 2019 Earnings
Release Pacific Assets
Full Year 2020 Trust PLC
Earnings Release Orchard Funding ORCH.L
Half Year 2020 Group PLC
Earnings Release Rockrose Energy RRE.L
Full Year 2019 PLC
Earnings Release Medica Group
Full Year 2019 PLC
Earnings Release JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM)
Full Year 2019 American
Earnings Release Investment
Trust
Countrywide PLC CWD.L
Full Year 2019
Earnings Release Studio Retail
Trading Statement Group PLC
Release
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