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* FTSE 100 down 0.2%, FTSE 250 adds 0.1%
Jan 8 (Reuters) – The UK’s FTSE 100 on Monday extended
losses from last week as precious metal miners tracked gold
prices lower, while investors looked ahead to the start of the
earnings reporting period and a slew of economic datasets this
week.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 fell 0.2% by 0812 GMT, while
the midcap index FTSE 250 edged 0.1% higher.
Precious metal miners led the losses among
sectors, falling 1.6% to a near three-month low, as gold prices
slipped on fading expectations of an early rate cut in the U.S.
The index fell close to 9% last week.
Shell slipped 1.6% as it flagged impairment charges
of about $2.5 billion to $4.5 billion for the fourth quarter,
mainly related to the Singapore refining and chemicals hub the
oil major is looking to sell.
CMC Markets soared 20% after the online trading
platform raised its full-year operating income forecast on
Monday, citing a strong third quarter driven by improved market
conditions.
In economic data, U.S. inflation data on Thursday and the
UK’s November GDP data on Friday will be on investors’ radar
amid quarterly reports from some of the biggest retailers and
homebuilders from Britain.
(Reporting by Shubham Batra in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane
Venkatraman)