Friday preview: US jobs, Wood Group

Friday is a slow day for scheduled corporate news so focus will naturally veer across the Atlantic to the September US non-farm payrolls release at 13:30.

The market is expecting payrolls to increase by 111,000 after August's 96,000 increase. The US unemployment rate is seen rising to 8.2% from 8.1% in August.

John Wood Group, the oilfield support services group, issues an interim management statement, and shareholders will be hoping there is no further bad news about its loss-making contract in Oman.

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Wood Group PSN, its production services network division, expects to lose between $15m and $20m in Oman by the year's end, having shipped $10m in the first half alone.

"We are active on a number of steps to improve financial performance [on the Oman contract], including increasing operational efficiency and resolving a number of commercial issues," the group said back in August.

There are also issues surrounding new orders for the Power Solutions business, Credit Suisse noted, but otherwise everything in the Wood Group garden seems fairly rosy.

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

32Red, Aggreko, Arbuthnot Banking Group, Cape, Cineworld Group, Communisis, Densitron Technologies, Devro, Elementis, Evraz, Grafton Group Units, Greggs, Hammerson, International Personal Finance, Irish Continental Group Units, Maintel Holdings, Meggitt, Michael Page International, Millennium & Copthorne Hotels, Ocean Wilsons Holdings Ltd., Regus, Resolution Ltd., SEGRO, Shaft Sinkers Holdings

QUARTERLY PAYMENT DATE

British Assets Trust

QUARTERLY EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Verizon Communications

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Consumer Credit (US) (20:00)

GDP (2nd release) (EU) (10:00)

Non-Farm Payrolls (US) (13:30)

Unemployment Rate (US) (13:30)

GMS

Sperati CA

FINALS

Imperial Innovations Group

IMSS

Wood Group (John)

AGMS

Abbey, Immofinanz AG, Madagascar Oil Ltd (DI)

TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS

KCOM Group

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

ACM Shipping Group, Darty, ECO Animal Health Group, Pennon Group

Q1

Elringklinger AG

JH