April 27 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 index .FTSE is seen opening flat on Wednesday, with futures FFIc1 down 0.09%.

* BANK OF IRELAND: Bank of Ireland BIRG.I said that Chief Executive Francesca McDonagh would step down after five years in charge that saw the bank grow through acquisition, sharply cut staff numbers and almost fully return to private ownership.

* EURO CLEARING: Britain's financial services minister said that the European Union would find it hard to replace London for clearing trillions of euros in derivatives, and that the limited shift in activity so far was not gathering pace.

* METALS: London copper prices fell as worries about demand due to COVID-19 lockdowns in top metals consumer China and waning risk appetite among investors weighed on the red metal.

* GOLD: Gold prices fell as the dollar consolidated at its highest level in more than two years and pressured demand for greenback-priced bullion.

* OIL: Oil prices extended gains in early Asian trade as geopolitical tensions simmered with Russia warning of gas supply cuts to Poland and Bulgaria while hopes of Chinese economic stimulus buoyed oil demand outlook.

* FTSE 100: London's FTSE 100 inched higher on Tuesday after a three-day sell-off, as resource and defensive stocks rose, while HSBC Holdings and Associated British Foods slid following earnings updates.

* UK CORPORATE DIARY:

Aveva

AVV.L

Trading update GSK

GSK.L

Q1 results LSEG

LSEG.L

Q1 trading statement Lloyds Banking Group

LLOY.L

Q1 interim managment

statement WH Smith

SMWH.L

HY Results WPP Plc

WPP.L

Q1 trading update Drax

DRX.L

Trading update Persimmon

PSN.L

Trading update

* For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on:

TODAY'S UK PAPERS

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Reporting by Amna Karimi in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi