March 11 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen...

March 11 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening 14 points higher at 6,740 on Thursday, according to financial bookmakers.

• MARKS & SPENCER: Marks & Spencer MKS.L said it would launch a wave of guest clothing brands on its website this spring, including Hobbs, White Stuff, Joules and Sloggi, in bid to accelerate online growth.
• RIO TINTO: Rio Tinto (RIO) said it had signed an agreement to supply the first batch of its aluminium-scandium alloy produced in North America to additive manufacturer and developer Amaero (3DA) .
• BHP: BHP Group (BHP) is unlikely to make any major acquisitions in the near-term given rocketing commodity prices, and will instead focus on exploration and wringing more value out of existing assets, its chief executive said.
• ASTRAZENECA: European Medicines Agency said on Wednesday there was no evidence so far linking AstraZeneca's AZN.L COVID-19 vaccine to illnesses in two people who received it in Austria.
• HSBC: HSBC HSBA.L will phase out its support for the coal industry in the developed world by 2030 and in the developing world by 2040, the bank said.
• HOUSE PRICES: The slow start to 2021 for Britain's housing market stretched into February, before finance minister Rishi Sunak announced new measures that could revive a property boom that began after the first COVID-19 lockdown last year, a survey showed.
• GOLD: Gold prices rose after a weaker-than-expected U.S. inflation data halted an advance in Treasury yields and the dollar.
• OIL: Crude oil prices rose as vaccine rollouts bolstered the economic outlook and U.S. fuel stocks fell sharply.
• The UK blue-chip index .FTSE closed 0.1% lower on Wednesday as easing inflation concerns pulled down mining and banks stocks.
• UK CORPORATE DIARY: James Fisher and Sons FSJ.J FY results Helios Towers HTWS.L FY results Morrison MRW.l FY results Savills SVS.L FY results Playtech PTEC.L FY results IG Group IGG.L FY results WPP WPP.L FY results Marshalls MSLH.L FY results Go-Ahead Group GOG.L HY results

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