What's in store...

A dramatic week for the markets is unlikely to finish on a quiet note with Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and British Airways both reporting today.
 
RBS announces its third quarter figures after unveiling details of its fate on Wednesday. The bank is in for a further £25.5 billion injection from the government and will sell off 318 branches in the UK - equating to 14% of its branch network to meet EU demands for receiving the state aid.
 
This will include its RBS branch network in England and Wales - originally Williams & Glyn's -and its NatWest brand in Scotland.
 
Additionally, it will offload its card payment business RBS Insurance and Global Merchant Services and its stake in commodities trader RBS Sempra Commodities.

It will also take part in the government's asset protection scheme under better terms that "improve incentives and deliver better risk-sharing with the private sector."

It will now insure £282 billion rather than the initial £325 billion agreed back in February following an improvement in market conditions. This will take the taxpayer stake in the bank to 84% from 70%.
 
RBS announced earlier this week it is bringing its results forward from Wednesday 11 November.
 
Equally controversial will be British Airways' (BAY) interim results. The airline has dominated headlines recently in its bid to slash costs by cutting flights, axing management bonuses and charging to pre-select seats. It is widely expected that BA will announce further losses after reporting a £148 million loss for the first quarter as revenue slipped 12%.
 
Outside of the financial results, news of strike action, the long awaited merger with Iberia, the airline's pension deficit and ongoing restructuring plans should all get a mention.

Friday 6 November

Results
 
(Interims) British Airways
(Quarterly) Smith & Nephew
 
Trading statement
 
PureCircle, Rentokil Initial
 
AGMs
 
AIREA, Dechra Pharmaceuticals, Quayle Munro
 
Dividend payment date
 
(Final) Advance Developing Markets, Daejan Holdings, Eclectic Investment Company, JPMorgan Emerging Markets Inv Trust
(Interim) Advance Developing Markets, BBA Aviation, Cenkos Securities, Derwent London, Fiberweb, Forth Ports, Gaming VC Holdings, Huntsworth, Hydrogen Group, Judges Scientific, Motivcom, Pinewood-Shepperton, S & U, Spirax-Sarco Engineering, Tullow Oil, UK Select Trust Ltd., Weir Group
(Quarterly) Investors Capital Trust A Shares, Investors Capital Trust B Shares