U.K. Stocks End Six-Day Advance; Scottish & Southern Declines

By Alexis Xydias

Jan. 7 (Bloomberg) -- U.K. stocks fell, ending a six-day rally. Scottish & Southern Energy Plc, the country’s second- biggest energy supplier, led losses after selling new shares to raise money for investments.

The benchmark FTSE 100 Index slipped 57.84, or 1.3 percent, to 4,581.08 as of 8:22 a.m. in London, after rising 10 percent in the previous six days. The broader All-Share Index dropped 1.1 percent. Ireland’s ISEQ Overall Index decreased 0.7 percent.

Scottish & Southern retreated 6.3 percent to 1,184 pence, the steepest drop in the FTSE 100. The company is selling as many as 40 million new shares, equivalent to 5 percent of its issued share capital, to fund investment in power plants and acquisitions.

Man Group Plc fell 4.1 percent to 275.25 pence, its first decline in eight sessions. The largest publicly traded hedge-fund manager was downgraded to “sell” from “buy” at UBS AG, which cited “heightened risk-aversion” among investors after Bernard Madoff’s alleged $50 billion fraud.

Marks & Spencer Group Plc rose 1.2 percent to 241.5 pence. Britain’s largest clothing retailer said revenue at outlets open at least a year fell 7.1 percent in the fiscal third quarter. That beat the 8.3 percent decline forecast by the median estimate of five analysts in a Bloomberg News survey.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alexis Xydias in London at axydias@bloomberg.net