Britain's leading share index shed 0.3 percent early on Thursday as commodities and financials Editing by Hans Peterssaw recent gains clipped after data rekindled concerns about tighter monetary policy in China.
At 0915 GMT, the FTSE 100 was down 19.99 points to 5,620.58, having closed 0.7 percent higher on Thursday, a 20 month peak.
The blue chip index tracked overnight moves in Asia, as investors fretted over monetary policy in China on the back of strong loan growth and quickening inflation.
"The reaction to the China data is typical of a slow news day … investors are using it as an excuse to take money off the table," said Jim Wood-Smith, head of research at Williams de Broe.
Miners, which have been at the forefront of the recent rally, went into reverse as raw material prices retreated after the data from China clouded the outlook for demand.
Fresnillo, Xstrata, Lonmin, Randgold Resources and Rio Tinto were among the worst performers, down 0.67 to 2.4 percent.
But Antofagasta bucked the trend, up 0.9 percent, helped by upgrades from Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank.
Energy issues retreated as oil fell below $82 a barrell on expectations that OPEC will pump above quotas in the second quarter, and with the Chinese economic data.
Oil majors BG Group, Royal Dutch Shell, and BP shed 0.1 to 0.8 percent.
BP has agreed to buy Brazilian, Azeri and Gulf of Mexico assets from Devon Energy for $7 billion, as the U.S. producer refocuses on onshore U.S. fields.
Oil explorer Tullow Oil fell 0.5 percent, extending the previous session's losses, which came on the back of its 2009 results.
Banks were weaker as investors' risk appetite ebbed away. Global heavyweight HSBC was down 0.8 percent, while part-nationalised lenders Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Banking Group both shed 0.1 percent, and Standard Chartered fell 0.3 percent.
Barclays was down 0.3 percent. The UK bank's shareholders have warned the bank against the purchase of a US retail bank, which Barclays is said to be considering, the Daily Telegraph reported.
Life insurer Old Mutual fell 2.9 percent after accompanying full-year results with plans to sell its life business and partly float its asset management operation in the United States as part of a strategic shake-up aimed at simplifying its complex structure.
Peers Aviva and Legal & General were down 0.4 and 0.5 percent, respectively.
MORRISON RETREATS
Wm Morrison Supermarkets shed 1.7 percent. The firm painted an uncertain picture for the consumer outlook after it beat forecasts with a 21 percent rise in annual profit and hiked its dividend.
Food retail peers Tesco and Sainsbury both fell 0.3 percent.
On the upside, Home Retail, Britain's biggest household goods retailer, was the top riser, up 2.7 percent as it nudged up its year profit guidance for the second time in three months.
Other general retailers rallied too, with Next, Marks & Spencer, and Kingfisher up 1.0 to 1.8 percent.
Travel firm Thomas Cook gained 2 percent as brokers returned in a positive mood following an Investor Day.
Investor interest was also on some defensive issues, which are perceived to be safer bets when the market falls.
British American Tobacco and Imperial Tobacco rose 0.5 and 0.2 percent respectively, while mobile communications giant Vodafone added 0.2 percent.
