Although some products should have fared well elsewhere, notably ice cream, group sales and net profits are expected to be lower, particularly after the impact of currency translation.The sole update from the FTSE 100 comes from WPP. It paid £4.4bn for its 20-year licence and is currently aiming for one million UK subscribers by next year.Other overseas companies reporting include hardware giant Hewlett-Packard in the US, Swiss watchmaker Swatch and food group Nestl?Most analysts are expecting a lacklustre set of results from the food giant, notably because of tough conditions in the US market. Analysts and investors will be poring over the results in a bid to see how the service is faring. The group has been pushing it hard in the UK, with offers of free Premiership goal clips and cut-price calls all designed to lure a somewhat sceptical public.
The group, which is posting interim results on Friday, has a 65 per cent stake in 3, the first full third-generation mobile phone offering. Some observers, however, believe the creditors will reject both offers and retain the equity themselves as there have been signs that wholesale electricity prices are rising.Another company that will be closely watched is Hong Kong's Hutchison Whampoa. While on paper the Goldman offer appears more attractive, it is for a different proportion of the debt. International Power is offering £80m for a portion of Drax's debt which, because of the complex way the facility is structured, would give IP a 36 per cent of Drax's equity. Alternatively, Goldman Sachs is offering up to £130m for 21 per cent of the debt.
Creditors, which are owed £1.2bn, have two offers to consider - both of which lapse on Friday. Earlier this month AES, the owner of the Yorkshire facility, threw in the towel after failing to reach agreement with the 53 banks and bondholders. Drax was plunged into crisis after its largest customer, TXU Europe, collapsed. Just as in the UK, the figures will be scrutinised for evidence that consumers are continuing to spend, helping to bolster the economy in the process.Back home, the future of Drax, the UK's largest coal-fired power station, could be sealed on Friday.