UPDATE 1-UK Stocks-Factors to watch on March 17

(Adds company news items and futures)
March 17 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening 75
points higher on Tuesday, according to financial bookmakers with futures up 3.8%
ahead of cash markets open.
* STOBART: Infrastructure group Stobart STOB.L said on Tuesday additional
liquidity is likely to be required due to the disruption to its aviation
business, especially the London Southend Airport, as the coronavirus crisis
hammers airport traffic. * CONTOUR GLOBAL: ContourGlobal GLO.L on Tuesday reported a 15.2% rise in
annual adjusted core earnings as it benefited from the sale of a 49% stake in a
portfolio Spanish solar power assets and said it was cancelling a project in
Kosovo that was to have been its last coal investment due to political barriers.
* DIXONS: Bitish electricals and mobile phone retailer Dixons Carphone
DC.L will close all UK standalone Carphone Warehouse stores as part of a plan
to turn around its mobile business, it said on Tuesday.
* ASTRAZENECA: AstraZeneca Plc AZN.L said on Tuesday its combo treatment
for a form of lung cancer failed to meet the main goal of improving overall
survival in patients in a late-stage study. * ANTOFASGASTA: Chilean copper producer Antofagasta ANTO.L said on Tuesday
2019 profit climbed 9.5% on higher sales and lower costs, but flagged it would
review its spending plans due to the tough global economy.
* ECONOMY: Britain's economy looks on track to grow by the smallest amount
since the financial crisis this year as the coronavirus outbreak threatens to
drag major economies into recession, the British Chambers of Commerce said.
* EU ANTITRUST: European Union regulators have asked companies seeking to
complete their desired mergers to delay submitting antitrust filings due to the
coronavirus outbreak. * CORONAVIRUS: Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday shut down social life
in Britain and ordered the most vulnerable to isolate for 12 weeks, ramping up
the battle against a coronavirus outbreak just as it accelerates towards it
peak. * CORONAVIRUS: British finance minister Rishi Sunak is expected to outline
further support for businesses at a press conference with Prime Minister Johnson
scheduled for Tuesday, a UK treasury source said on Monday. * CORONAVIRUS: Britain has asked manufacturers including Ford F.N , Honda
7267.T and Rolls Royce RR.L to help make health equipment including
ventilators to cope with the coronavirus outbreak and will look at using hotels
as hospitals. * BOE: The Bank of England said it will offer 12-week U.S. dollar funds
starting on Wednesday, part of a move by six of the world's major central banks
to ease strains in global markets and maintain liquidity through the coronavirus
crisis. * COPPER: London copper prices edged up from a 40-month low hit in the
previous session, as investors expected that the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy
measures could boost long-term demand for metals. * GOLD: Gold prices fell nearly 1.5%, extending losses from the previous
session's meltdown, as investors continued to sell assets to keep their money in
cash because of heightened concerns over the economic toll of the coronavirus
outbreak. * OIL: Oil rose more than $1 as bargain hunters emerged after recent sharp
falls due to the coronavirus pandemic and the price war between Saudi Arabia and
Russia, but fears of a recession still dragged on the market. * UK shares plunged on Monday as airlines announced flight cuts and stepped
up calls for emergency aid to get through the coronavirus outbreak. UK PAPERS
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