EU faces concerted lobby on airline aid

The meeting of European Union transport ministers will, for once, share equal billing with the gathering of the more illustrious…

The meeting of European Union transport ministers will, for once, share equal billing with the gathering of the more illustrious finance ministers in Luxembourg tomorrow, with the agenda dominated by the future of Europe's stricken flag carriers following the attacks on the United States.

The EU is holding the line against state aid but the Government and Aer Lingus, along with other European carriers, is seeking more latitude in the light of US assistance to its operators.

The issue is also certain to feature highly at the EU Summit in Ghent, which begins on Friday.

Monday

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Results: Arm Holdings (Q3), Bank of America (Q3), Bioglan Pharma (H1), Gannett (Q3), Harvey Nash Group (H1), Hibernia Corporation (Q3), Norsk Hydro (Q3), Novellus Systems (Q3), Prowting (H1), Unisys (Q3).

AGMs: Emblaze Systems (e.g.m.), Fulmar (e.g.m.), Mid Wynd International Investment Trust, Perthshire Leisure (e.g.m.).

Meetings: Euro-zone finance ministers meet (Luxembourg).

Indicators: US business inventories (Aug); Italian industrial production (Aug); German wholesale prices (Sep).

Other: Marconi issues trading statement.

Tuesday

Results: Bellway, Biogen (Q3), Brown (N) Group (H1), CR Bard (Q3), Caterpillar (Q3), Gleeson (MJ) Group, Intel (Q3), IBM (Q3), Johnson & Johnson (Q3), Knight-Ridder (Q3), Kraft Foods (Q3), Mellon Bank (Q3), Philips (Q3), Pixelworks (Q3), RealNetworks (Q3), Reuters (Q3), SBS Technologies (Q1), Southwest Airlines (Q3), Sytner (H1), Teradyne (Q3), Wels Fargo (Q3), Wilmington Group (H1).

AGMs: Dechra Pharm, Tom Hoskins (e.g.m.).

Meetings: EU transport ministers meet (Luxembourg) and finance ministers meet (Luxembourg); 14th annual conference of the Irish Association of Corporate Treasurers (O'Reilly Hall, UCD - to Wed).

Indicators: British retail prices (Sep); US capacity utilisation (Sep), industrial production (Sep) and national Association of House Builders' index (Oct); Italian consumer prices (Sep); French trade balance (Aug), industrial production (Aug) and manufacturing output (Aug); Japanese industrial production (Aug).

Other: Accenture publishes fourth annual survey on e-commerce in Ireland; British Financial Services Authority chairman Mr Howard Davies gives evidence to parliament's Treasury Select Committee.

Wednesday

Results: Advanced Micro Devices (Q3), Alcan (Q3), AOL Time Warner (Q3), Apple Computer (Q4), Blacks Leisure (H1), Boeing (Q3), Celestica (Q3), Cendant (Q3), Citigroup (Q3), Dun & Bradstreet (Q3), EMC (Q3), Ford Motor Company (Q3), Iona (Q3), JP Morgan Chase (Q3), New York Times (Q3), Parthus Technologies (Q3), Philip Morris (Q3), Siebel Systems (Q3), Smartforce (Q3), Symantec (Q3), Tellabs (Q3), Thomson Multimedia (Q3), Travelocity.com (Q3), UAL (Q3), US Airways (Q3).

AGMs: Jersey Phoenix Trust.

Meetings: Seminar on "Inside the Mind of the Hacker" (Citywest Hotel, Dublin); Montgomery Oppenheim Investment Conference (Radisson Hotel, Dublin); Zeriously - Have We Met? event (Sugar Club, Dublin); Wireless Wednesday meeting on "Where is the revenue?" (Herbert Park Hotel, Dublin); 13th Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation ministerial meeting (Shanghai - to Thurs).

Indicators: EMU harmonised consumer prices (Sep), industrial production (Aug) and labour costs and earnings (Q2); US building permits, housing starts and completions (Sep); British unemployment (Sep), average earnings (Sep) and unit wages (Sep).

Other: US Federal Reserve chairman Mr Alan Greenspan testifies on monetary policy and the current economic situation before the Joint Economic Committee; HSMAI Avis marketing awards (Shebourne Hotel, Dublin).

Thursday

Results: Bausch & Lomb (Q3), Burlington Resources (Q3), Colgate-Palmolive (Q3), Computer Associates (Q2), eBay (Q3), Eli Lilly (Q3), Fibernet Group, Gateway (Q3), General Motors (Q3), Guidant (Q3), Indigovision Group, Ingersoll-Rand (Q3), Inktomi (Q4), Liz Claiborne (Q3), Mattel (Q3), Merck (Q3), Microsoft (Q1), Nortel Networks (Q3), OM Gruppen (Q3), PMC-Sierra (Q3), RJ Reynolds (Q3), Raytheon (Q3), Sage (Q2), SAP (Q3), WH Smith, STMicroelectronics (Q3), Sun Microsystems (Q1), Tyco International, Xilinx (Q2).

AGMs: Alumasc Group.

Meetings: Irish Association of Pension Funds seminar on pension fund performance and the Irish economy in a global context (University Industry Centre, UCD); The Institute of Directors North/South meeting (Deloitte & Touche, Dublin).

Indicators: US Philadelphia Federal Survey (Oct); British retails sales (Sep), trade balance (Aug), public sector borrowing requirement (Sep) and M4 data (Sep); Japanese leading and coincidental indicators (Aug).

Friday

Results: Gillette (Q3), Nokia (Q3), Novartis (Q3), Saab (Q3), Visteon (Q3), Washington Post (Q3).

Indicators: US consumer prices (Sep), exports/imports (Aug) and real earnings (Sep); French current account (Jul); German Ifo business climate index (Sep), producer prices (Sep) and consumer prices (Oct).

Meetings: EU heads of state and government meet (Ghent); Seminar on implementing risk management strategies in the workplace (Council Room, North Wing, UCC).

Other: Public holiday in Spain.