By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.K. stocks pulled back Friday, with
broad-based losses pushing the FTSE 100 benchmark toward its worst
weekly drop in more than three years.
The FTSE 100 fell 1.4% to 6,370.10, on track for a fifth
consecutive decline, to round off a week when oil prices tumbled to
five-year lows and investors continued to fret about slower global
growth. The London benchmark is set to be down 5.5% for the week,
which would be the largest such drop since September 2011,
according to FactSet.
Only six of the benchmark's components were moving higher,
topped by utility companies United Utilities PLC and Severn Trent
PLC , as they rose 2.7% and 0.7%, respectively.
Oil-services provider Petrofac Ltd. fell 3.9%, losing the most
on the FTSE 100. Sector-wise, the basic materials and oil and gas
groups were each down roughly 1.5%. Among miners, Randgold
Resources PLC gave up 2.3% and Anglo American PLC declined 2.1%.
Citi analysts said it foresees Anglo American's free cash flow in
2015 "will remain under pressure even if we see some recovery in
commodity prices from here."
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