Feb 16 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 index is seen opening 30
points higher at 7,264.8 on Friday, according to financial bookmakers.
* VIRGIN MONEY: Virgin Money formed a rare female chair and chief
executive team among Britain's top 350 listed companies by hiring former HSBC
HSBA.L executive Irene Dorner as chairwoman.
* TULLOW OIL: British oil firm Tullow oil has picked electrical
engineer and businessman Kweku Awotwi as the new head of its Ghana operations
after the retirement of its current managing director, the company said in a
statement.
* BOOKER/TESCO: Shareholder advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services
has recommended investors in Booker to vote against a planned merger
with Tesco, citing concerns about the financial merits of the
deal.
* OIL: Oil prices edged higher on Friday as the dollar languished near a
three-year low, with Asian trade likely to be subdued as many markets are closed
for the Lunar New Year holiday.
* GOLD: Gold prices held firm on Friday to remain on track for their biggest
weekly percentage gain in nearly two years, buoyed by a weaker U.S. dollar and
as investors looked to hedge against inflation.
* COPPER: London copper edged up in thin trade on Friday amid China's new
year holidays and was on track for its strongest weekly gain in more than one
year, backed by resilient global manufacturing growth and a persistently weak
dollar.
* The UK blue chip index closed up 0.28 percent at 7,234 points on Thursday.
* For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on: cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageId=livemarkets
* UK CORPORATE DIARY:
SEGRO PLC Full Year 2017 Earnings Release
BGEO Group PLC Q4 2017 Earnings Release
TODAY'S UK PAPERS
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(Reporting by Harish Bhaskar)