London open: Mining stocks drag FTSE 100 lower for fourth day

UK stocks declined for a fourth straight day on Friday morning as the FTSE 100 continued to pull back from recent all-time highs.The Footsie was down 0.1% at 6,888.66 in early deals with mining stocks among the worst performers. London's blue chip index has continued to fall after hitting a new record closing high of 7,037.67 on Monday.Analysts said markets were showing caution towards the end of the first quarter and ahead of the next earnings season."I think we've seen a lot of profit taking this week, some balancing of the books and basically, preparation for the weeks ahead which could be quite rocky if earnings are as weak as is widely anticipated," said Oanda'sCraig Erlam.Inflation data from Japan overnight also failed to buoy sentiment as the core consumer price index fell to 2%. Stripping out the effect of last April's sales tax increase, inflation dropped to just 0%.Looking ahead, Friday is set to be a quiet day in terms of economic data, with US economic growth and consumer sentiment figures the only major release.Antofagasta leads miners lowerCopper mining group Antofagasta declined after being forced to call a halt to mining activities in the north of Chile due to heavy rain. Since Tuesday evening, flash floods in the Atacama Desert in the north of Chile have wreaked havoc across the region, where Antofagasta's Centinela, Antucoya and Michilla mines are located.Mining peers Fresnillo, Anglo American, Randgold Resources and Glencore were also out of favour as metal prices weakened.Royal Bank of Scotland dipped into the red after confirming it will be offloading its Coutts private banking business to Switzerland's Union Bancaire Privée.Barratt Developments was higher after announcing that chief executive Mark Clare has stepped down following nine years in the role, to be replaced by finance director David Thomas. Analysts had criticised Clare for being unambitious. Housing peers Persimmon and Taylor Wimpey were also putting in decent gains.London interdealer broker ICAP rose amid rumours that it is looking to spin off its electronic trading arm EBS-BrokerTec. The FTSE 250 company's management have been mulling the split and, according to sources cited by Bloomberg, have recently discussed the separation with clients and potential advisers.Airline stocks Easyjet and IAG were performing well, rebounding after falling sharply on Thursday on the back of a spike in the oil price. Brent was down 2% at $58.01 a barrel early on.Market MoverstechMARK 3,184.15 +0.24%FTSE 100 6,888.66 -0.10%FTSE 250 17,283.89 +0.14%FTSE 100 - RiserseasyJet (EZJ) 1,885.00p +2.61%International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 598.00p +1.87%InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 2,614.00p +1.75%Shire Plc (SHP) 5,400.00p +1.69%CRH (CRH) 1,823.00p +1.62%Vodafone Group (VOD) 226.80p +1.25%Barratt Developments (BDEV) 542.50p +1.02%GKN (GKN) 365.20p +1.00%SSE (SSE) 1,562.00p +0.90%Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,109.50p +0.86%FTSE 100 - FallersWeir Group (WEIR) 1,733.00p -2.48%Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 4,781.00p -2.47%Anglo American (AAL) 1,050.00p -2.46%Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 198.00p -1.83%Glencore (GLEN) 292.00p -1.75%Fresnillo (FRES) 699.00p -1.62%Antofagasta (ANTO) 713.50p -1.52%Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 260.60p -1.44%Rio Tinto (RIO) 2,836.50p -1.41%Carnival (CCL) 2,990.00p -1.12%FTSE 250 - RisersCard Factory (CARD) 299.70p +2.53%CLS Holdings (CLI) 1,743.00p +2.53%Countrywide (CWD) 552.00p +2.22%Enterprise Inns (ETI) 100.00p +2.09%Man Group (EMG) 204.90p +1.89%Balfour Beatty (BBY) 239.50p +1.87%Rank Group (RNK) 187.90p +1.84%Jimmy Choo (CHOO) 169.00p +1.81%Homeserve (HSV) 369.50p +1.76%Diploma (DPLM) 832.00p +1.71%FTSE 250 - FallersAllied Minds (ALM) 665.00p -5.00%Lonmin (LMI) 123.20p -4.79%Kaz Minerals (KAZ) 208.70p -3.25%Supergroup (SGP) 964.50p -2.67%Premier Oil (PMO) 143.30p -1.92%Tullow Oil (TLW) 302.50p -1.88%Nostrum Oil & Gas (NOG) 600.00p -1.64%Centamin (DI) (CEY) 57.05p -1.47%Investec (INVP) 565.50p -1.39%Drax Group (DRX) 375.50p -1.34%