(Adds news items, futures)
April 29 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening 15
points higher at 6,979 on Thursday, according to financial bookmakers, with
futures FFIc1 seen up 0.2% ahead of cash market open.
* SHELL: Royal Dutch Shell RDSa.L raised its dividend by 4% after
reporting stronger-than-expected first-quarter profits due to asset sales and
higher oil and liquefied natural gas prices. * NATWEST: British lender NatWest NWG.L returned to profit in the first
quarter of 2021 after joining rivals in releasing some of the cash it had set
aside to cover expected bad loans due to the pandemic. * UNILEVER: Unilever ULVR.L reported higher-than-expected underlying sales
growth for the first quarter, buoyed by double-digit increases in India and
China. * St. JAMES'S PLACE PLC: British wealth manager St. James's Place Plc
SJP.L reported a record 135.46 billion pounds ($189.06 billion) in funds under
management in the first quarter on Thursday, as massive government stimulus and
aggressive COVID-19 vaccination drives fuelled investor sentiment. * HEATHROW: Heathrow, Britain's biggest airport, said losses widened in its
first quarter as the COVID-19 pandemic continued to hammer travel. * DS SMITH: Britain's DS Smith SMDS.L said it expects to report annual
results in line with expectations, as a pandemic-driven boom in online shopping
boosted its sales volumes and improved performance in the United States.
* WH SMITH PLC: UK's WH Smith Plc SMWH.L on Wednesday warned of the
possible risk of breaching its covenant tests in 2022 after it slumped to a
first-half loss and launched a potential 325 million-pound ($450 million) bonds
offering as the retailer navigates the COVID-19 crisis. * LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE GROUP: The London Stock Exchange Group LSEG.L
said on Wednesday its forecast for expenditure following its $27 billion
acquisition of data and analytics company Refintiv remains unchanged.
* ASTRAZENECA: Argentina's government said on Wednesday it had met with
representatives of drugmaker AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) Plc AZN.L to ask about "difficulties"
in the production of its COVID-19 vaccine and supply to the country.
* OIL: Oil prices extended gains after rising 1% the previous session, as
bullish forecasts on recovering demand this summer outweighed concerns about the
impact of rising COVID-19 cases in India, Japan and Brazil. O/R
* London's FTSE 100 climbed on Wednesday, lifted by energy shares and a slew
of upbeat earnings updates from companies including Lloyds Banking Group and WPP
as investors awaited the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy statement. .L
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