WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - U.K. stocks were moving lower on Thursday as weakness in oil and metal prices hit commodity-related stocks.
The benchmark FTSE 100 slipped 14 points, or 0.2 percent, to 7,277 after declining half a percent on Wednesday.
BP Plc dropped 1.1 percent and Royal Dutch Shell lost 1.5 percent as oil prices hit fresh six-week lows after reports that the U.S. has been reaching out to all major oil consumer nations to release their strategic petroleum reserves to temper rallying crude oil prices.
Anglo American, Antofagasta and Glencore all were down around 1 percent as London copper prices fell to their lowest in more than a month on concerns over rising inventories.
Halma fell 2.2 percent despite the safety equipment provider reporting record first-half results.
Royal Mail jumped 5.4 percent. The postal service and courier company forecast higher annual earnings in its U.K. business following a strong first half.
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