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MONDAY Indicators: Euro zone industrial production (Jun); US consumer inflation expectations (Jul) Meetings: International Workshop on Big Data Standardisation (DCU)
TUESDAY Results: Balfour Beatty, Carlsberg, Home Depot, Staples, Urban Outfitters Indicators: Irish construction PMI (Jul), balance of trade (Jun), exports and imports (Jun); UK inflation (Jul), retail price index (Jul), PPI input and output (Jul); German GDP growth flash (Q2); US export and import prices (Jul), retail sales (Jul) Meetings: Employment Law in the Public Sector by Graphite HRM (Brooks Hotel, Drury Street, Dublin 2); EndFlow - Networking Tactics Workshop (Bank of Ireland Startup Space, Grand Canal Square, Dublin 2):
With major changes coming down the line on data protection rules, public sector employers in particular will be expected to lead the way in implementation.
The General Data Protection Regulation comes into force next May and the myriad ways in which it will affect employer-employee relationships will be picked apart at an event by Graphite, the HR and employment advisory specialist.
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“It’s really to ensure there is no liability in terms of breaches, given that we are in an ever increasing litigious society in terms of employment law and people’s awareness of employment law,” says Louise McGonagle, senior HR consultant behind the event.
For the public sector, there are two chief areas of concern. When the new legislation comes in, the amount of time within which employers will be expected to give over personnel files to employees will reduce from 40 days to one month, a robust change and one that will require preparation.
Such files are generally sought in contentious scenarios, including formal grievance procedures.
Employers will also be required to have data protection officers in place specifically to deal with these files. For the private sector, this aspect of legislative tightening will only apply to companies with a certain staff level.
Graphite’s Dublin event will help guide employers through a legal shift that promises significant challenges within the public service and beyond.
WEDNESDAY Results: AP Moller-Maersk Indicators: Euro zone GDP growth rate (Q2); UK unemployment (Jun), average earnings (Jun); US mortgage applications (Aug), housing starts (Jul)
THURSDAY Results: Micon, Geberit, Frurarom, Wienerberger, Gap Indicators: Euro zone inflation (Jul); UK retail sales (Jul); US industrial and manufacturing production (Jul) Meetings: Dublin Chartered Accountancy open evening (Chartered Accountants House, Pearse Street, Dublin 2): Micon's ability to keep its performance ahead of industry peers should help it outperform expectations when it reports half year results on Thursday, given the recent results of its peers.
The Co Clare based drilling company – perpetually and positively shadowed by its involvement in rescuing trapped Chilean minors in 2010 – has been outperforming market growth rates for the last year and a half.
This is the reason Davy, in a note ahead of results, anticipates it will “comfortably” surpass its estimates.
Following a strong first quarter in which revenues grew by 34 per cent, it expects overall growth of just over 20 per cent for the first half.
“Notwithstanding a lower gross margin in Q1 (37 per cent) from a negative mix effect, we expect c.39 per cent for the half with an operating margin of c.14 per cent. We forecast a pre-tax profit of €4.9 million,” it said.
Bolstering expectations have been the second quarter results as posted by Micon’s mining-exposed peers in the industrial engineering sector generally.
As referenced by Davy, Sandvik’s mining and rock technology business saw a strong second quarter in which revenue was up 25 per cent year-on-year.
Order intake in the quarter was up 32 per cent while operating margin also improved significantly to 16 per cent from 9.3 per cent in the second quarter of 2016.
FRIDAY Results: Kingspan, Footlocker, Indicators: Euro zone construction output (Jul); German PPI (Jul)