London pre-open: FTSE set to rise as investors await Budget and jobless data

20th Mar 2013 07:24

City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open up 14 points from yesterday's close of 6,441, ahead of both the Budget speech and UK jobless data. Chancellor George Osborne has come under pressure to inject life into the UK economy as he prepares to unveil the 2013 Budget at 12:30 Wednesday. Osborne has ordered most government departments to make a further 1.0% cut to budgets over the next two years to allow for savings of £2.5bn to fund extra capital spending. He said departments can afford to slash budgets because they under-spent this year by more than the average.Meanwhile, US benchmarks finished flat to slight lower on Tuesday after Cypriot politicians rejected a bailout deal from the Troika which included a proposal to impose a one-off tax on depositors. While the ruling party abstained from the vote, 36 other lawmakers voted unanimously against the proposal. Cyprus will now have to turn to a 'Plan B' to raise the €5.8bn in revenue demanded by international lenders to pave the way for the aid. Markets are now concerned that the country may struggle to raise enough funds, which could lead to a default and an inevitable exit from the Eurozone. Other news out today includes the EU balance of payments, the EU consumer confidence indicator, the US FOMC interest rate, and the German producer price index. In UK company news, Smiths Group has rewarded shareholders with a 6.0% increase in dividend after posting a rise in half-year revenue and profit. The firm reported a 6.0% year-on-year jump in underlying headline revenue of £1.4bn. Pre-tax profit came to £223m, an underlying growth of 6.0% on the previous year, as the company achieved strong performance across all its units.High Street pastry and baked goods retailer Greggs served up a mixed bag of results, with an increase in full year sales and a dividend hike while profit and like-for-like sale slipped. The retailer said 2012 trading was very challenging as it battled against a mixture of continued consumer spending pressure and the wettest weather on record. Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation (ENRC) labelled 2012 as a 'challenging year' as a swing into the red led to the miner scrapping its final dividend. The miner recorded a loss before tax of $550m, down from a profit of $2.76bn the year before, as it took impairment charges and an onerous contract provision totalling $1.54bn.