But BP will face tough questions about how safe its Russian venture TNK is from the political intrigues that have almost

But BP will face tough questions about how safe its Russian venture TNK is from the political intrigues that have almost bankrupted Yukos.Lloyds TSB and HBOS will report almost £4bn of pre-tax profits for the first half between them on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively as Britain’s consumers show no sign of satisfying their appetite for credit. It lacks exposure to the slowing London market, and the US market remains strong.Shareholders will be hoping there will be no more nasty surprises from GlaxoSmithKline, which has already warned that profits will fall during the first three quarters of 2004. It says this could result in another £10m of savings by the end of next year, although other analysts were more sceptical. Despite continued falling sales, it is expected to post £100m pre-tax profits on Thursday, up almost a quarter on the same period last year, but this is partly down to last year’s tabloid price war, which ate into revenues.Shell, which is still being investigated on both sides of the Atlantic for misreporting its oil and gas reserves, will be under the spotlight again on Thursday.

Analysts expect it to post record results of between $4.3bn (£2.3bn) and $4.6bn thanks to high oil prices and record refining margins. This time it is production, not reserves, that will be vexing the market. The Anglo-Dutch giant is expected to announce a fall in production for the first half of anything between 2 and 9 per cent when it reports. The company’s exploration portfolio is going through a dry patch, and it has missed out on the good hunting grounds in Angola, Azerbaijan and Russia, unlike its rival BP, which reports on Tuesday. Chairman Jeroen van der Veer will be pressed to give more guidance over precisely how bad production will be this year.

Williams de Bro?ays that the recent cautious tone from the company has offset market optimism that the group will beat expectations for the fifth quarter in a row as the company’s revenues are still declining significantly.Merrill Lynch analysts expect Trinity Mirror to outline more ways of saving money (a recurrent theme in the media sector), principally by streamlining its printing operations and its supply chain management. Its Friday closing share price of 327p means the company is valued at almost three times its all-time low 18 months ago, but this week’s results won’t be spectacular, analysts believe. If they see Ivette is mindful of this too, things should take off.”Focusing on a few employers and investing some time in face-to-face meetings will help. Big employers normally have national agreements with much larger agencies, and Ivette would be best advised to offer a more bespoke service for the small and medium-sized enterprise market, especially in London.”Rebecca Clake, organisation and resourcing adviser at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development “Over half of private-sector employers turned to recruitment agencies in 2003. But they need to be convinced a new agency can provide good-quality candidates, to tight deadlines – and this credibility is likely to be a first consideration, before rates.”Some of Ivette’s difficulties could stem from businesses already having preferred supplier agreements with other agencies.