LONDON MARKETS: FTSE 100 Slips, With Miners Lower After Soft China Data

By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch

U.K. stocks drop for second straight day

U.K. stocks drifted lower Thursday, with mining shares falling after weaker-than-expected economic data from China, a major buyer of commodities.

The benchmark FTSE 100 was off 0.1% at 7,020.70. The blue-chips index on Wednesday finished lower by 0.5% (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ftse-100-gains-as-tesco-rolls-royce-move-higher-2015-04-22).

The biggest decliner on Thursday was WPP PLC , with shares down 1.1%. The advertising firm said it's reviewing its forecasts and cautioned that clients remained focused on cost-cutting (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/wpp-reviews-forecasts-as-revenue-rises-2015-04-23-248589). WPP said revenue rose in the first quarter, by 8.3% in sterling terms.

Some mining shares were under pressure after a closely watched HSBC survey showed manufacturing activity in China fell to a one-year low of 49.2 in April (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/china-hsbc-manufacturing-pmi-falls-to-one-year-low-2015-04-22). That compared with a final reading of 49.6 in March. Shares of precious-metals producer Fresnillo PLC fell 1.6%, Anglo American PLC lost 0.8%, Randgold Resources Ltd. slipped 0.2% and iron-ore heavyweight BHP Billiton PLC (BHP) gave up 0.4%.

Elsewhere, home-builder Taylor Wimpey said in a trading update that it saw a 14% rise in the average selling price of homes (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/taylor-wimpey-posts-strong-sales-reservations-up-2015-04-23). The company also said uncertainty surrounding the outcome of the May 7 general election "has not impacted customer confidence, and underlying demand remains high." Shares turned lower by 0.9%.

Advancers included supermarket chain Tesco PLC , up 1.2% following Wednesday's 5.2% slide in the wake of its massive full-year loss (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/tesco-posts-biggest-ever-loss-after-turbulent-year-2015-04-22). Shares of Meggitt PLC rose 0.9% after a first-quarter trading update from the aerospace, defense and energy group.

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