By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index snapped a
five-day winning streak at the open on Wednesday as investors
remained cautious ahead of minutes from the latest Bank of England
policy-setting meeting, which could give more hints on the first
rate hike.
The FTSE 100 index slipped 0.2% to 6,766.99, after closing at
the highest level since late July on Tuesday.
Posting one of the biggest losses in the benchmark, shares of
Antofagasta PLC dropped 1.3% after the copper producer's executive
chairman, Jean-Paul Luksic, decided to become nonexecutive chairman
from Sept. 1.
BHP Billiton PLC (BHP) added to its 4.9% loss from Tuesday and
shed 0.8% after Credit Suisse cut the miner to underperform from
neutral.
At 9:30 a.m. in London, or 4:30 a.m. Eastern Time, attention
turns to the minutes from the BOE's August meeting, with some
economists expecting the report to show some member are becoming
more hawkish in their stance on interest rates. Read: BOE dissent
could hold clues to rate hike
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