By Simon Kennedy
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- The U.K.'s benchmark index lost ground
Tuesday as mining stocks came under pressure, though a handful of
mid-cap stocks posted solid gains after well-received trading
updates.
The FTSE 100 index fell 1.1% to 5,755.88 as worries over a
potential interest-rate hike in China weighed on commodity prices
and mining stocks.
Xstrata PLC and Antofagasta PLC both dropped 3.1%, while Rio Tinto PLC (RIO) declined 2.5%.
Bank stocks also weighed on the benchmark index as uncertainty
over sovereign debt and a potential bailout of Ireland continued to
concern investors.
Shares in Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LYG) fell 1.4% and Barclays
PLC (BCS) dropped 1.9%.
Several companies reporting earnings and trading updates had a
better session.
House builder Taylor Wimpey PLC rose 3.6% after it said profit
would be towards the top end of its expectations and added that it
has agreed on the terms of a new credit facility with a group of
lenders.
Cable & Wireless Worldwide PLC rose 2.5% after it said
public-sector margins will only fall slightly, tempering worries
about trading conditions after it issued a profit warning earlier
this year.
TalkTalk Telecom Group PLC was another mid-cap riser, adding
4.9% after reiterating its guidance.
On the downside, shares in Punch Taverns PLC dropped 4.8% after
the firm said its Finance Director Phil Dutton will leave the
company next year.
Low-cost airline easyJet PLC dropped 2.5% after saying pretax
profit for the year jumped to 154 million pounds ($247 million)
from £54.7 million and that it expanded its fleet by 24
aircraft, which will give it a total of around 220 aircraft by
September 2013.