LONDON MARKETS: FTSE 100 Turns Lower As Energy Stocks Stung By Slide In Oil Prices

By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch

LONDON (MarketWatch)--U.K. stocks were swept lower Wednesday, with energy shares coming under increased pressure as oil prices dropped to five-year lows.

The FTSE 100 lost grip of its gain and fell 0.5% to end at 6,500.04. The benchmark on Tuesday dropped 2.1% in a selloff that left the index with its lowest close since early November.

The oil and gas group stumbled 2.1% on Wednesday as U.S. oil futures (CLF5) fell by 5% after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported an unexpected increase in supplies.

Prices had already been falling ahead of the U.S. data, as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries cut its forecast for oil demand next year. January Brent crude fell more than 4% to below $65 a barrel on London's ICE Futures.

Leading decliners on the FTSE 100, oil-services company Petrofac Ltd. fell 3.3% and Tullow Oil PLC lost 2.7%.

BP PLC fell 1.5%. The oil major said it expects to book $1 billion in restructuring charges over the next year as it simplifies operations and corporate activities.

BG Group PLC shares reversed course and ended 2.9% lower. The shares had opened higher after BG said it sold its Australian gas pipeline network to APA Group for $5 billion (GBP3.19 billion), a higher price than had generally been expected, analysts said.

Decliners also included Aberdeen Asset , down 1.3% after the biggest asset manager in Scotland was downgraded to neutral from buy at Citi.

But Ashtead Group shares popped to the top of the British benchmark, climbing 9.2% as the equipment-rental company expects full-year results to surpass its previous expectations. Pretax profit in its fiscal second-quarter rose 33%.

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