Friday preview: Charles Taylor, mortgage lending, consumer confidence

A week dominated by the Budget looks set to end on a quiet note, with few heavy hitters from the corporate world expected to make announcements.

Insurance consultancy firm Charles Taylor issued a profit warning back in January after slightly higher fourth quarter costs in the Management Services business and a quieter end to the year in Adjusting Services.

The stock is not exactly followed by a host of brokers, so consensus forecasts might be less reliable than for better covered companies, but the word on the street is that 2011 sales will be flat at £101m, while profit before tax is tipped to dip to £9.6m.

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On the economic front, Nationwide Consumer Confidence data is out shortly after midnight while mortgage lending figures from the British Bankers Association are due to be released at 9:30.

The Nationwide index for February is expected to be unchanged from January at 47, while the mortgage approvals figure for February is seen easing to 37,250 from 38,092 in January.

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Foresight VCT, Hargreaves Services, Medusa Mining Ltd. (DI), Ruffer Investment Company Ltd., SSE

QUARTERLY PAYMENT DATE

Bank of America Corp., Duet Real Estate Finance Ltd

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

New Homes Sales (US) (14:00)

GMS

Macquarie Korea Infrastructure Fund GDRS

FINALS

Charles Taylor Consulting, Inspired Energy, Phoenix Group Holdings (DI), Robinson, Tawa

ANNUAL REPORT

Aegon NV, Coca-Cola HBC S.A., Elementis, Jarvis Securities, Lloyds Banking Group, Provident Financial

SPECIAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

easyJet

AGMS

Income & Growth VCT , Lotte Shopping Co. Ltd Regs/144a, St. Modwen Properties

UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

BBA Mortgage Lending Figures (09:30)

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Brunner Inv Trust, Driver Group, easyJet, LPA Group

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