* FTSE down 0.3 pct
* Shares dall on political, sovereign debt concerns
* Retailer sentiment hit by high street outlook worries
By David Brett
LONDON, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 share index
fell on Friday as political turmoil in the Middle East and a
reawakening of concerns over Europe's euro zone debt crisis
prompted investors to flee riskier assets.
By 1149 GMT, the FTSE 100 index <> was down 16.22
points, or 0.3 percent, at 6,003.79.
The index hit a near three-year closing high on Tuesday but
has since slipped back with investors unwilling to push on with
economic uncertainties lingering.
"It's quite a positive sign in the broader sense because
we're not charging up and leaving ourselves open to big bouts of
profit-taking," Ed Woolfitt, head of trading at Galvan, said.
"It's tentative and markets tend to rise a bit better when
there's a bit of worry behind it. It's when people start to get
carried away that you get a bit concerned."
Banks <.FTNMX8350> were weighed on by European sovereign
debt concerns as Portugal offered to buy back bonds in a move
aimed at allaying concerns over the country's ability to pay off
its debts, while Moody's downgraded the unguaranteed senior
unsecured debt ratings of six Irish banks. []
Barclays <BARC.L> shed 1.6 percent ahead of results due on
Tuesday.
Insurer Legal & General <LGEN.L>, however, rose 4.3 percent
on a bullish note from Nomura, which lifted its price target.
EGYPT RISK
Miners <.FTNMX1770> and energy <.FTNMX0530> stocks retreated
as investors appetite for risk faded, and with the concerns over
the political situation in Egypt resurfacing.
Mid cap miner Centamin Egypt <CEY.L>, which rose in the
previous session on hopes of a resolution to the crisis in
Egypt, shed 4.1 percent after President Hosni Mubarak said he
would not step down immediately. []
Anglo American <AAL.L>, which is due to report earnings on
Feb. 18, however, rose 1.2 percent after De Beers, the world's
largest diamond producer, returned to profit. []
Anglo American said it will post underlying earnings of $302
million for the year from its investment in De Beers.
Meanwhile, oil explorer Tullow Oil <TLW.L> rose 1.8 percent
as Deutsche Bank and Barclays Capital upped their respective
target prices on the stock, following an oil discovery at one of
its interests in Ghana on Thursday.
Concerns over the outlook for retailers saw Next <NXT.L>,
Marks & Spencer <MKS.L> and Kingfisher <KGF.L> among the top
fallers on London's blue chip index, down 1.6-3.3 percent.
Analysts said the latest weekly department store sales
figures from John Lewis underwhelmed. []
"The department store chain has started to struggle a little
in the last few weeks against tough comparatives ... We can be
sure that life will be much tougher elsewhere on the High
Street," Arden Partners analyst Nick Bubb said.
Meanwhile British manufacturers' input costs rose at their
fastest annual rate in more than two years in January.
[]
Defensively perceived stocks supported the FTSE, with
utility Centrica <CNA.L> up 1.2 percent.
Shire <SHP.L> added 1.6 percent as three brokers raised
their respective target prices on the drugmaker.
And Diageo <DGE.L> bounced 1.2 percent, after falling on
Thursday following results, as brokers remained broadly positive
on the drinks maker.
(Editing by Greg Mahlich)
