Britain's top share index fell on Thursday following a drop in mining stocks on the back of weaker metals prices, although losses were limited by a rally in telecom firm BT Group after its strategic acquisition, Reuters reported.
Shares in BT rose 4.6 percent to a 14-year high after saying it agreed a 12.5 billion pound ($19 billion) deal for mobile operator EE, with the share price absorbing news that the firm will raise 1 billion pounds through a placing of new stock to help fund the move.
'BT is the biggest service provider in the UK ... and now they're taking on EE's 33.8 percent share in the mobile sector, which is significant,' Trent Earwaker, trader at LONTRAD, said.
On a sector level, miners lost ground again. The UK mining index fell 1.4 percent, tracking a 2 percent fall in copper prices on a rise in metal inventories. Global miner BHP Billiton fell 2 percent, while Glencore was down 2.6 percent.
The FTSE 100 index was down 0.4 percent at 6,833.19 points by 1106 GMT, also pressured by some company results. Drugmaker AstraZeneca fell 3 percent after saying its fourth quarter results missed expectations.