By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Shares of Pearson PLC and Aggreko PLC
led U.K. stocks lower on Friday, trimming the benchmark index's
monthly gain to 4.5%.
The FTSE 100 index edged down 0.1% to 6,800.51, partly erasing a
0.2% gain from Thursday.
Posting the biggest loss in the index, shares of Pearson slumped
6.6% after the publisher of the Financial Times said full-year
operating profit declined due to weakness in its U.S. education
business.
Aggreko gave up 3.6% after the temporary-power company said
Chief Executive Rupert Soames will leave the firm to become CEO at
Serco Group PLC . Shares of Serco Group rallied 6.8%.
As a sector, mining firms added to the pressure, as they
tracking most metals prices lower. Shares of Randgold Resources
Ltd. dropped 1.5%, Antofagasta PLC lost 1.3%, Rio Tinto PLC (RIO)
erased 1.1% and BHP Billiton PLC (BHP) slipped 0.4%.
Sentiment was also hurt by a negative mood in the rest of Europe
after better-than-expected euro-zone inflation data eased pressure
on the European Central Bank to act at its meeting next week.
Economists have recently worried that the region was heading toward
deflation, increasing speculation that the ECB would either cut
rates or use unconventional easing measures to loosen policy at its
March meeting.
Banks moved lower, with shares of Standard Chartered PLC down
2.1%, Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (RBS) off 1.8% and HSBC
Holdings PLC (HSBC) 0.9% lower.
On a more upbeat note, shares of Old Mutual PLC climbed 5.1%
after the investment firm lifted its full-year dividend and said
adjusted operating pretax profit rose last year on a
constant-currency basis.
William Hill PLC gained 3.9% after reporting an increase in
full-year profit as it benefited from a strong revenue at its
online business.
Mondi PLC advanced 4.1% after the paper and packaging firm
reported a 22% rise in headline underlying operating profit for
2013.
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