April 8 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100  .FTSE  index is seen
opening 23 points higher at 6,909 points on Thursday, according
to financial bookmakers.
    
    * ASTRAZENECA: European Union health ministers failed on
Wednesday to agree a common guidance on the use of the
AstraZeneca  AZN.L  COVID-19 vaccine, despite calls for
coordination across member states to combat public hesitancy
over taking the shot.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2M01D7
    * ASTRAZENECA: Mexican and Brazilian health regulators said
on Wednesday they would not limit the use of AstraZeneca's
 AZN.L  COVID-19 shot after Britain's vaccine advisory committee
recommended not using it for people under 30, citing rare blood
clot risks.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2M030P
    * ASTRAZENECA: Spain will only give AstraZeneca's
coronavirus vaccine to people over 60 years old after European
and British regulators found a potential link between the shot
and rare brain blood clots.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2M01PY
    *OIL: Oil prices fell after official figures showed a big
increase in U.S. gasoline stocks, causing concerns about demand
for crude weakening in the world's biggest consumer of the
resource at a time when supplies around the world are rising.
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2M10HQ
    * HIRING: British companies sharply stepped up hiring and
offered higher pay to new staff last month as they grew more
confident about economic recovery and prepared for COVID-19
restrictions to ease, a recruiters body said on Thursday.
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N2M033M
    * NATIONAL GR urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N2M03JX
    * GOLD: Gold prices slipped as investors turned to riskier
assets after the U.S. Federal Reserve's latest meeting minutes
indicated continued policy support and cemented hopes of a quick
economic turnaround.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2M10CZ
    * The UK blue-chip index  .FTSE  ended higher on Wednesday,
led by gains in commodity stocks and a weaker pound lifted
exporters.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2M01VR
    
    * UK CORPORATE DIARY:
    
 Dunelm               DNLM.L     Trading Statement
                                 
 Ferrexpo             FXPO.L     Trading Statement
                                 
 OSB Group            OSBO.L     FY Results
                                 
 Hyve Group           HYVE.L     H1 Trading
                                 Statement
 Johnson Matthey      JMAT.L     FY Trading
                                 Statement
 ASOS                 ASOS.L     HY Results
                                 
 
    
    * For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please
click on:  LIVE/     
    TODAY'S UK PAPERS
    > Financial Times                       PRESS/FT 
    > Other business headlines              PRESS/GB 

 (Reporting by Jasmine I S in Bengaluru)
 ((jasmine.is.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net;))