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FTSE 100 down 0.4%, FTSE 250 off 0.3%
March 15 (Reuters) - London stocks opened lower on
Wednesday, with insurer Prudential hitting the bottom of the
FTSE 100 index after full-year results, while investors awaited
the UK spring budget due later in the day.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 lost 0.4% by 0823 GMT,
trading in the red after jumping more than 1% on Tuesday.
Prudential fell 4.3%. The Asia-focused insurer
reported an 8% jump in full-year year profit, while the
company's chief financial officer James Turner also said the
insurer had a $1 million exposure to Silicon Valley Bank which
was 'minimal' against a total debt book of $23 billion.
Lower gold prices weighed on precious metal miners,
taking the index down 1.4%. The more domestically-focussed FTSE 250 midcap index also lost 0.3%.
Investors would be keenly awaiting the UK's spring budget,
with Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt due to make a budget speech to
parliament at around 1230 GMT.
(Reporting by Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi
Aich)
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