(Adds new items in bullet 1 -3)

Sept 13 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 index is seen opening flat on Friday, with futures largely unchanged.

* VODAFONE: Britain's competition regulator said Vodafone's

$19 billion merger with CK Hutchison's Three UK could lead to higher prices for mobile customers and that it would explore potential solutions to its concerns before making a final decision about the deal in December.

* FLUTTER: Irish betting giant Flutter Entertainment

said it will buy a 56% stake in NSX Group, the operator of Brazilian gaming group Betnacional, for about $350 million.

* NATIONAL GRID: Britain's National Grid said that it has agreed to sell its electricity system operator to the UK government for 630 million pounds ($827.5 million), including debt.

* BAE SYSTEMS: British defense group BAE Systems said on Thursday the U.S. Army has awarded the company a $440 million contract to produce additional Bradley Fighting Vehicles to replace the ones the government had already sent to Ukraine.

* OIL: Oil prices rose on Friday, extending a rally sparked by output disruptions in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, where Hurricane Francine had forced producers to evacuate platforms before it hit the coast of Louisiana.

* GOLD: Gold prices soared to an all-time high on Friday as the dollar weakened amid prospects of a U.S. interest rate cut next week, while palladium has gained 15% so far this week.

* METALS: Copper prices rose to a two-week high on Friday, lifted by hopes of stimulus in top metals consumer China after President Xi Jinping pushed for the country to achieve its annual economic target.

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

TODAY'S UK PAPERS

> Financial Times

> Other business headlines

($1 = 0.7613 pounds)

(Reporting by Radhika Anilkumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Sumana Nandy)

((Radhika.Anilkumar@thomsonreuters.com;))