* FTSE 100 down 0.1 pct
* FTSE 250 edges 0.5 pct lower
* Metro Bank tanks after profit misses expectations
By Muvija M and Shashwat Awasthi
Jan 23 (Reuters) - UK shares fell on Wednesday as freshworries about slowing global economic growth weighed on oil andfinancial stocks, with Metro Bank losing almost a third of itsvalue after missing profit forecasts.
The FTSE 100 .FTSE was 0.1 percent lower at 1019 GMT, offearlier lows as investors sought safety in stocks considered tobe a better bet during times of economic uncertainty, includingAstraZeneca AZN.L , GlaxoSmithKline GSK.L and National GridNG.L .
The more domestically-exposed mid-cap index .FTMC shed 0.5percent. Both were dragged into a broad-based sell-off acrossglobal stocks.
Fears of a prolonged Sino-U.S trade dispute rose after theFinancial Times reported the Trump administration had rejectedan offer from China for talks ahead of high-level negotiationsscheduled for next week. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nS0N1YG02KWhite House adviser LarryLudlow denied the report, but the damage to sentiment was done.
Further marring the mood were soft U.S. home sales data, abigger-than-expected fall in Japan's exports in December andweak factory sales in Canada - pointing to tough tradingconditions across the world. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N1ZM0OAurn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nT9N1Y700Zurn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N1ZM0QI
Luxury brand Burberry BRBY.L fell on weak Christmas salesdata, but recovered almost all of its losses. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N1ZN1BAHigh-end retailers across Europe have been hit by concerns aprolonged Sino-U.S. trade war could hit Chinese demand.
"The rejuvenation of the iconic Burberry brand is still inits early stages, but there are clear signs that the newmanagement team is taking the bull by the horns," said RichardHunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor.
Uncertainties over Britain's exit from the European Unionpersisted. As the March 29 deadline approaches, hopes aregrowing British lawmakers will prevent a disorderly no-dealdeparture, although no sign of an agreement has yet emerged.
Bank shares .FTNMX8350 deepened their fall from theprevious session when UBS results missed expectations.
Oil majors BP BP.L and Shell RDSa.L fell as crude pricesflirted with negative territory in choppy trading. O/R
Metro BankMTRO.L tanked nearly 30 percent on the mid-capindex - losing more than 700 million pounds in market value -and was on course for its worst day on record as its annualprofit missed estimates. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N1ZN32N
Sanne GroupSNNS.L , which provides alternative asset andcorporate administration services, tumbled 16 percent afterannouncing the departure of its chief executive and a tradingupdate.
But Europe's biggest plastics packaging maker RPC RPC.L rose 4.7 percent, among rare gainers, after Apollo Global agreedto buy the company for 3.3 billion pounds ($4.3 billion).
ComputacenterCCC.L jumped 7.1 percent after an upbeattrading update boosted by higher IT spending in Germany and theUnited Kingdom. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N1ZN2P1
($1 = 0.7696 pounds) (Reporting by Muvija M and Shashwat Awasthi in Bengaluru;Editing by Alexandra Hudson and Mark Potter) ((Muvija.M@thomsonreuters.com; within U.S. +1 646 223 8780,outside U.S. +91 80 6749 3638; Reuters Messaging:muvija.m.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
(( For related prices, Reuters users may click on - * UK stock report .L FTSE index: 0#.FTS6 techMARK 100 index: .FTT1X FTSE futures: 0#FFI: Gilt futures: 0#FLG: Smallcap index: .FTSC FTSE 250 index: .FTMC FTSE 350 index: .FTLC Market digest: .AD.L Top 10 by vol: .AV.L Top price gainers: .NG.L Top % gainers: .PG.L Top price losers: .NL.L Top % losers: .PL.L
* For related news, click on - * UK hot stocks: [HOT and GB] Wall Street: .N Gilts report: GB/ Euro bond report GVD/EUR Pan European stock report: .EUTokyo stocks: .T HK stocks: .HK Sterling report: GBP/ Dollar report: USD/
* For company prices, click on - * Company directory: UKEQ By sector: FTAX
* For pan-European market data, click on - * European Equities speed guide................ EUR/EQUITY FTSE Eurotop 300 index........................... .FTEU3 DJ STOXX index................................... .STOXX Top 10 STOXX sectors........................ .PGL.STOXXS Top 10 EUROSTOXX sectors................... .PGL.STOXXES Top 10 Eurotop 300 sectors.................. .PGL.FTEU3S Top 25 European pct gainers.................... .PG.PEUR Top 25 European pct losers..................... .PL.PEUR ))
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
