LONDON: Britain's top share index edged lower on Wednesday after gaining in the previous two sessions, with companies such as jet engine maker Rolls-Royce and the country's biggest housebuilder Barratt slipping after their updates.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index was down 0.3 percent by 0950 GMT after gaining 0.6 percent on Tuesday and 0.3 percent on Monday. The benchmark index is up more than 8 percent so far this year.
Britain's mid-cap index was trading flat.
Rolls-Royce fell 3.6 percent, the biggest decliner in the FTSE 100. The maker of engines for military jets, ships and nuclear-powered submarines said demand for its engines for extra-wide-body civil aircraft was strong, but business aviation had weakened further.
Britain's pre-eminent engineering company, which is recovering from a string of profit warnings, also said offshore oil and gas markets showed no signs of recovering and an accounting change will cut into its profit until 2020-25.
"The new accounting policies mean that last year's profits will be restated, and adjusted down by 900 million pounds," said George Salmon, an equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
"Operationally, the group is undergoing some major restructures. Investors will hope that it emerges as a leaner and more transparent company. However, the road ahead could be a long one."
Barratt also saw some selling pressure and fell 2.7 percent. Britain's biggest housebuilder said it was having to cut the price of some of its most expensive London homes by up to 10 percent, the latest sign that the market is cooling after Brexit and property tax increases.
Mining companies also dropped, as falling metals prices put pressure on companies such as Antofagasta, down 2.4 percent, and BHP Billiton, down 0.9 percent.
However, gains in some major companies limited the losses.
Water utility Severn Trent, which recommended on Wednesday the acquisition of Dee Valley Group, rose 2 percent after Citigroup upgraded its rating on the stock to "neutral" .
Prudential rose 1.5 percent after reporting a 19 percent rise in new-business profit for the first nine months of the year, driven mainly by strong performance at its Asian business. The life insurer also said it planned to increase its dividend.
"Prudential has reported another good new-business performance .. with a continuation of the trends evident in H1 2016. The highlight for us was the strength of the outcome in Asia," said Eamonn Flanagan, analyst at Shore Capital.
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