City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open up three points from yesterday's close of 5,795, edging marginally higher boosted by slight gains seen in Asia overnight.

However, with US markets once again closed today, markets on this side of the Atlantic are expected to take their cue from a speech by the President of the European Central Bank, Mario Draghi, due later today.

Also on the cards are German unemployment figures, European retail data and the European business indicator stats.

Acting as a backdrop, overnight the Bank of Japan increased the size of its asset repurchase programme by 11trn yen, to a total of 66trn yen (£515bn). That after the release of a barrage of weak economic data.

In the UK, The Confederation of British Industry´s distributive trades survey for October is published at 11:00. The consensus forecast is for a rise to 8 points from 6 before.

The Bank of England will publish updated information on Funding for Lending Scheme usage and lending at 10.30.

As regards yesterday´s consumer lending data, economists at Lloyds are writing this morning that: "this casts further doubt on the likelihood that the Monetary Policy Committee will extend quantitative easing at its next meeting in November."

In company news, integrated oil giant BP reported a sharp quarter-on-quarter increase in underlying replacement cost profit in the third quarter, paving the way for an increase in the dividend. Adjusted replacement cost profit in the third quarter was $5.17bn, up from $3.69bn in the preceding quarter but down from $5.46bn in the corresponding quarter of 2011. The quarterly dividend has increased by one cent to nine cents.

Profit growth at Imperial Tobacco was broadly in line with expectations in the year to the end of September, helping the firm to raise its dividend payout ratio and increase its full-year payout by over a tenth. Tobacco net revenue in the 12 months to September 30th increased by 1% from £6,913m to £7,005m, a 4% increase on a constant currency basis. Meanwhile, stick equivalent volumes fell by 2.7% from 346.0bn to 336.6bn. The majority of the decline was due to "ongoing market weakness in Ukraine and Poland and compliance with international trade sanctions in Syria," the company said.

Standard Chartered, the bank focused on emerging markets, continued to see good momentum across its businesses and geographies in the third quarter. In the year to date, income grew at a high single digit percentage rate, maintaining the trajectory seen in the first half of 2012. Income has continued to be affected by the strength of the US dollar against Asian currencies, with year to date income growing at a double digit rate on a constant currency basis.

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