After a busy week of economic data, investors on the London stock market switch their attention to company earnings next week. London's FTSE 100 index of top shares closed at 5,733.45 points on Friday, up just 0.09 percent from a week earlier, as dealers tracked growth data on both sides of the Atlantic.
US economic growth sped up to 2.8 perecent in the fourth quarter, the Commerce Department said Friday, helped by a pickup in private inventory investment and consumer spending. But the number came in well below the 3.2 percent forecast as personal consumption spending grew more slowly than expected. Earlier in the week, official data showed that Britain's economy shrank by more than expected in the fourth quarter, placing it dangerously close to recession as the eurozone debt crisis and austerity measures hit activity.
British gross domestic product (GDP) dipped 0.2 percent in the three months to December, driven by weakness in the production and construction sectors.
Next week attention shifts to earnings updates from top British companies including energy group Royal Dutch Shell and pay-TV subscriber BSkyB.