MNI European Morning Briefing

     LONDON (MNI) - A fairly busy economic docket on Thursday dominated by

central bank speakers and events.

     The European calendar kicks off at 0700GMT with German Trade Balance

Figures.

     At 0730GMT the Bank of France Business Survey will be released.

     At 0800GMT Spanish Industrial Production data is on the schedule.

     ECB Governing Council member Jens Weidmann will give a speech at GIC /

SUERF / Deutsche Bundesbank Conference, in Frankfurt.

     At 0900GMT RBA Gov Philip Lowe speaks at A50 Australian Economic Forum

dinner in Sydney, also with Q&A.

     At 0950GMT Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Rob Kaplan is to

participate in a moderated Q&A session at the Global Interdependence Center

Conference in Frankfurt, with media Q&A.

     ECB Governing Council member Francois Villeroy de Galhau gives a speech at

the GIC/SUERF/Deutsche Bundesbank Conference, in Frankfurt at 1015GMT.

     At 1100GMT the Eurozone OECD Leading Indicator will be published.

     At 1200GMT is Bank of England Super Thursday where the rate announcement,

minutes and quarterly inflation report will all be released.

     Analysts are unanimous in expecting Bank Rate to be unchanged at 0.5% and

an unchanged stock of assets. If their shared logic is correct, eyes will fall

on other areas that could provide clues for the path of policy over the Bank's

forecast horizon.

     One of these will be the vote breakdown. Of the four analysts polled thus

far, one saw the the possibility of a sole dissenter emerging -- likely Michael

Saunders, off the back of his recent hawkishly-interpreted January speech.

     Across the Atlantic Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank President Patrick

Harker is to speak at the National Association of College and University

Business Officers 2018 Endowment and Debt Management Forum in New York, with

audience and media Q&A at 1300GMT.

     At 1315GMT Canadian Housing Starts - CMHC (Canadian Mortgage and Housing

Corp) are on the docket.

     Also from Canada at 1330GMT is the New Housing Price Index

     In the US at 1330GMT are weekly Jobless Claims. The level of initial

jobless claims is expected to rebound by 2,000 to 232,000 in the February 3 week

after a 1,000 decline in the previous week. The four-week moving average would

fall by 7,250 in the coming week, as the recent-peak 261,000 level in the

January 6 week drops out of the calculation, assuming the MNI forecast is

correct and there are no revisions.

     Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank President Neel Kashkari is to participate

in a moderated Q&A sessionin Pierre, South Dakota, with audience Q&A.

     At 1445GMT the US Bloomberg Comfort Index is on the schedule.

     US Natural Gas Stocks figures will be published.

     At 1600GMT The Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs are to

consider the nomination of Marvin Goodfriend to be a Member of the Board of

Governors of the Federal Reserve in Washington.

--MNI London Bureau; +44 203 865 3809; email: kieran.williams@marketnews.com