LONDON (ShareCast) - (ShareCast News) - 1630:Close The top flight index retreated sharply as oil prices moved sharply lower yet again after possible hints from China's central that it might loosen the crawling-peg between the yuan and the US dollar. Mining stocks joined the oil majors at the bottom of the pile despite another day of gains for base metals. Three-month copper futures finished 2.7% higher to reach $4,712.50 per metric tonne in LME trading. Old Mutual and Investec continued to reel as the US tacked on another 2% versus the South African rand. FTSE 100 down 135.27 points to 5,952.78.


1445: An editorial posted to the People's Bank of China on Friday argued it made more sense to measure the yuan versus a basket of currencies instead of just the US dollar, The Wall Street Journal reported. Will the news affect the Fed's decision next week? A strategist from UBS speaking on Bloomberg TV says you would need a "big" market dislocation to affect the result of that meeting, of about 8%.


1330: Three-month copper futures are rising by 2.2% to $4,668.75 per metric tonne on the LME.

1132: Front month Brent crude futures are lower by 1.53% to reach $39.13 per barrel on the ICE.

1116: Commenting on yesterday's MPC decision analysts at Citi say that: "there is not even a hint that any of the majority are close to joining McCafferty in voting for a hike. We continue to expect a long period of stable rates."

1034: Commercial oil stocks in the world's major economies will continue to grow in 2016, albeit much more slowly, the rich-world's oil watchdog said in a closely watched report, adding to the selling pressure on oil futures.

0937: There was a considerable increase in the proportion of respondents, from 26% to 38%, who said interest rates in the UK might stay about the same over the next twelve months, according to the BoE/GfK Inflation Attitudes survey.

0900: Shares have started the day slightly weaker despite the slight gains seen overnight on Wall Street, alongside renewed selling in oil futures. There is little in the way of economic data due out today, except later in the session Stateside. Old Mutual is at the bottom of the pile on the top flight index, on follow-through selling from the previous session. Out on the second-tier index, shares of Entertainment One are registering a sharp bounce. Stock in International Personal Finance is cratering in reaction to changes to consumer legislation in Slovakia. FTSE down 17.38 points to 6,070.10.

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