(Adds company news, futures)
April 12 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening 6 points higher on Wednesday, according to financial bookmakers, with futures FFIc1 up 0.1 percent ahead of the cash market open.
* HUNTING: Oilfield services company Hunting Plc HTG.L said on Wednesday its revenue for the first quarter had been ahead of management's expectations due continued higher activity levels in the U.S. shale sector. WH SMITH: British books, newspaper and stationery retailer WH Smith Plc SMWH.L posted a 3.75 percent rise in first-half pretax profit as its travel business continued to outshine lagging high street or town centre retail operations. PAGEGROUP: British recruiter PageGroup PAGE.L reported a record first-quarter gross profit and said it saw growth in its markets outside the UK, where client and candidate confidence levels are constrained by uncertainty after Britain's vote to leave the EU. TESCO: Tesco TSCO.L , Britain's biggest retailer, beat forecasts for full-year profit, showing its recovery is picking up pace and potentially giving a boost to its stuttering campaign to win investor backing for a takeover of wholesaler Booker BOK.L . BHP: Anglo-Australian miner BHP Billiton BHP.AX , BLT.L said on Wednesday a minor shareholder's proposal to overhaul its corporate structure and spin off its U.S. oil division was flawed and would involve costs far beyond any benefits. BARCLAYS: Investors have warned that it is "entirely possible" that British regulators would force Barclays (LON:BARC)' chief executive out of the job, the Telegraph reported on Tuesday. RBS: Former Royal Bank of Scotland RBS.L chief executive Fred Goodwin is scheduled to appear in court at the start of June over claims the lender misled investors over its 2008 share sale, a draft timetable released on Tuesday showed. EU-BANKS REGULATIONS: The European Union's markets watchdog will issue guidance and possible curbs for national regulators in coming weeks to stop a "race to the bottom" to attract UK-based financial firms after Brexit, it said on Tuesday. The UK blue chip index ended up 0.2 percent on Tuesday, after hitting earlier in the session a three-week high, outpacing European markets, while mid and small-caps hit fresh record highs with strong gains from JD Sports and Balfour Beatty driving the index. For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on: cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageId=livemarkets
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