Greece and other external events to rule markets

OUTLOOK reports like this are usually difficult to write because of the inherent unpredictability of markets and the problems associated with selecting potential market-moving events in the days ahead. This one, however, doesn't fall into that category since there is absolutely no doubt as to the main feature of the week ahead - Greece, its referendum over the weekend and the implications of the eventual outcome.

There are, however, two subsidiary considerations that appear to have been temporarily nudged aside because of Greece - the health of the US economy and the consequences this has for interest rates, as well as crashing stock prices in China.

First is Greece. Readers would probably know that the country's citizens have been asked to vote a "yes" or "no" to the question of whether to accept the eurozone's austerity terms in exchange for more bailout money.