LONDON: Britain's top share index saw early gains evaporate on Wednesday, with mining stocks like Anglo American still under pressure despite a stabilisation in metal prices.
Britain's FTSE 100 was down 26.53 points, or 0.4 percent, at 6,108.69 points by 0921 GMT. It fell fallen 1.4 percent in the previous session to its lowest in nearly a month.
Shares in oil companies and miners turned lower after a strong start, even though Brent crude and copper prices began to recover. Anglo American fell 10.5 percent to a record low, taking its losses since announcing a restructuring on Tuesday to more than 20 percent.
A number of brokers downgraded the stock after the announcement, which involved suspending its dividend. "Results next year will be better than if Anglo hadn't done this, but at the current rate it will be falling out of the FTSE soon.
The way is down from here," Joe Rundle, head of trading at ETX Capital, said.
"Low commodity prices are here to stay, so even if there is a little jump higher in metals prices today the general trend is downwards." Gains were led by Industrial equipment hire group Ashtead.
The stock rose 8.2 percent, putting it one track for its best session of the year. The company was buoyed by strong results after saying it expected full-year results to beat forecasts.
It posted a 21 percent rise in pretax profit for the first half of its fiscal year. It also announced an increase in dividends.
"The interim dividend is up 33 percent, with the prospect of more good news for investors as the group now expects its full year figures to be ahead of previous forecasts," Russ Mould, Investment Director at AJ Bell, said in a note.
Among mid-caps, Stagecoach was set for its biggest decline in seven years, down around 14 percent.
The British rail and bus operator said people had avoided travel to big cities since the militant attacks in Paris in mid-November, forcing it to "modestly" downgrade its annual earnings forecast.
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