BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - U.K. shares fell on Wednesday, led down by mining and energy stocks as oil and other commodity prices continued to fall on concerns over slowing Chinese growth.
The benchmark FTSE 100 was down 34 points or 0.47 percent at 7,379 in late opening deals after closing marginally lower on Tuesday.
Miners Anglo American, Antofagasta and Glencore fell 2-3 percent while oil & gas exploration firm Tullow Oil lost 1.8 percent and Royal Dutch Shell declined 1 percent.
HSBC Holdings shed 0.6 percent after it agreed to resolve a French probe into tax evasion.
Pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca rose half a percent on receiving FDA approval for a drug from its respiratory pipeline.
Premier Foods jumped nearly 7 percent after returning to profit in the first half.
On the economic front, Bank of England Deputy Governor Jon Cunliffe said that it was possible to wait for clear signs of pay growth picking up, before tightening policy early this month.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX