Ggood morning. All eyes are on the latest UK labor market report, due out at 7am. As with the latest release, key figures around the change in payrolls up to mid-August will be closely watched, although the delayed unemployment gauge (which will cover July) is also expected to rise.

Elsewhere this morning, Chinese import data came in disappointing, indicating that the recovery in consumer demand in the country may slow. However, retail sales rose, and industrial production also exceeded estimates.

5 things to start your day

1) Emirates is teetering in the UK as the city of London executes its employees. Dubai-based Emirates Airlines is seeking to cut costs in an effort to weather the economic fallout from the pandemic

2) UBS is looking to achieve great success with rival Credit Suisse. The deal will be the largest bank merger since the financial crisis, creating a company with more than £ 4 trillion in assets.

3) BP can thrive without oil, as the president pledges. Boss admits that many investors doubt the oil giant can transform itself into a champion of renewable energy.

4) The luxury holiday park boss may go bankrupt due to debt. Deloitte is chasing Dream Lodge founder Simon Moir over £ 414,000 in unpaid debt.

5) G4S turns down a £ 3 billion bid. Canadian company GardaWorld has revealed an offer that could lead to a hostile bid to purchase G4S after management rejected its initiatives.

What happened overnight

Asian stocks extended their gains on Tuesday and the dollar fell, with investor sentiment buoyed by Chinese data and optimism about COVID vaccines.

Chinese blue chips added 0.4%, buoyed by data showing Chinese industrial production rose 5.6% in August compared to a year ago, expanding for the fifth month in a row.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index of stocks outside Japan advanced 0.3%, for a fourth consecutive day of gains.

Japan’s Nikkei index was down 0.8%, while South Korean stocks rose 0.3%, and the Australian S & P / ASX 200 index rose 0.1%.

E-Mini future S&P 500 futures are down 0.3%, while EUROSTOXX 50 futures are down 0.2%.

So far this year, gains in Asia have been led by technology stocks.

Is coming today

Interim results
Marshall, Polly Pipe

Trading statement
Chimmering, Okado

Economics
Unemployment, earnings (UK), industrial production (US and China), retail sales (China), ZEW surveys (Germany)