* FTSE 100 down 0.3%, FTSE 250 down slightly
* NMC Health tops FTSE 100 on M&A news
* Coronavirus concerns persist among traders
(Adds news items, updates to closing prices)
By Muvija M and Shashwat Awasthi
Feb 10 (Reuters) - London's FTSE 100 weakened again on
Monday after Britain declared the coronavirus epidemic a serious
and imminent threat to public health, though preliminary
takeover approaches thrust shares in troubled healthcare company
NMC 32% higher.
The FTSE 100 index of blue-chip companies dipped
0.3%, with oil majors Shell and BP applying the
most pressure as crude prices slipped. The midcap index
ended the day marginally lower.
The drop was in line with Asian markets, where most indexes
were down, as the death toll from the coronavirus outbreak
exceeded 900, surpassing that of the 2002-03 SARS epidemic.
UK shares, however, lagged their counterparts in Europe and
on the Wall Street.
Meanwhile, NMC Health snapped a five-day losing
streak and recorded its best day since December after it said it
had received preliminary bid approaches from KKR and GK
Investment.
The news came as a relief to shareholders, who have seen
NMC's market value dwindle since U.S. firm Muddy Waters launch a
short-selling attack on the hospital operator in late 2019.
Payments group Finablr, which shares the same
founder as NMC, shot up by 10% to top the midcap bourse.
The pullback in the wider markets followed last week's
rally, which included both British benchmark indexes recording
their best day since mid-December.
In China, though workers began venturing out of their houses
to offices and factories on Monday after the government eased
some restrictions, markets were on edge as the death toll from
the coronavirus outbreak hit a new daily record.
Liquidity injection by China's central bank, Beijing's
pledge to lower tariffs on a host of U.S. imports and upbeat
economic data from Washington had fuelled a recovery rally in
stocks in early February.
OANDA analyst Jeffrey Halley said it was hard to see further
gains in equities against the backdrop of the virus. "That is
likely to be the theme of the week, as the economic damage is
totalled up from the outbreak," he said.
In other news-related moves, Centrica lost 3% to be
the steepest blue-chip faller after the Times newspaper reported
that the British Gas owner was expected to report lower profit
due to the government's price cap on energy bills.
Among smaller caps, Intu Properties surged 30%,
its biggest one-day rise since 1995 - after the shopping centre
operator said it was in talks with top shareholder and
billionaire John Whittaker's Peel Group and Link Real Estate
Investment Trust, among others, to raise money.
(Reporting by Muvija M and Shashwat Awasthi in Bengaluru;
Editing by Arun Koyyur and Mark Potter)
