* Pharmas rally as EU report fails to surprise
* Miners easier on profit-taking
* Wall Street seen lower after Thanksgiving
By Jon Hopkins
LONDON, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Britain's leading share index
<> was flat at midday, with profit-taking weakness in
miners just balanced by gains in drugmakers.
At 1145 GMT, the FTSE 100 index was 4.17 points, or 0.1
percent, lower at 4,230.27 after closing 73.41 points, or 1.8
percent, higher on Thursday.
The UK blue chip index is still up over 12 percent on the
week.
U.S. stocks look set for modest falls when the market opens
for a half-day session Friday, having been closed on Thursday
for Thanksgiving, following on from four sessions of advances
ahead of the holiday.
"There is relief we are up where we are at the moment, and
no-one wants to rock the boat," said Mic Mills, a trader at
spread betting firm ETX Capital.
Drug stocks lent their strength to the FTSE 100 with the
sector rallying after the publication of a long-anticipated EU
report on generic competition.
Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes said preliminary
results of a year-long probe showed competition in the
pharmaceuticals industry did not work as well as it should.
However with a lack of specific penalties, traders said,
pharma stocks recovered some of their losses, lifting
GlaxoSmithKline <GSK.L>, AstraZeneca <AZN.L>, and Shire <SHP.L>
between 2.5 and 3.9 percent.
Among media issues, BSkyB <BSY.L> advanced 4.5 percent after
the firm said it had applied for permission to appeal the
Competition Appeal Tribunal's ruling that it had to reduce its
17.9 percent stake in free-to-air broadcaster ITV <ITV.L> to
below 7.5 percent.
Shares in mid-cap ITV <ITV.L> shed 6.6 percent. The TV
broadcaster told staff on Thursday it had called in Boston
Consulting Group to help implement a second phase of cost cuts,
the Financial Times said.
MINERS SUCCUMB TO PROFIT-TAKING
Heavyweight mining issues were weak as early enthusiasm for
the sector faded into profit-taking, reflecting easier commodity
prices.
Kazakhmys <KAZ.L> was the top FTSE 100 faller, down 6.4
percent, while Antofagasta <ANTO.L>, Anglo American <AAL.L>,
Xstrata <XTA.L> and Eurasian Natural Resources <ENRC.L> lost
between 5.2 and 6.3 percent.
Oil majors were mixed with crude prices easier <CLc1> ahead
of a weekend OPEC meeting, although the cartel has not ruled out
making its third supply cut in three months.
Royal Dutch Shell <RDSa.L> added 0.5 percent and BG Group
gained 1.1 percent, but BP <BP.L> lost 0.8 percent.
Oil explorer Tullow Oil <TLW.L> lost 2.2 percent as its
exposure to the Indian sub-continent created some uncertainties,
according to traders.
Political risks remain high in the region as Indian forces
battle militants who killed at least 119 people in Mumbai, while
a state of emergency in Thailand underscored the dangers of
political unrest in emerging markets.
Banks were also mixed after recent rallies on hopes the
sector's woes could be easing as the UK government's bailout
bears fruit.
Royal Bank of Scotland <RBS.L> shares shed 4.4 percent
following news the UK government will take a 57.9 percent stake
in the group after investors took up just 0.24 percent of the
shares offered in its state-backed capital raising.
Barclays <BARC.L> and HSBC <HSBA.L> both lost 1.4 percent
but Lloyds TSB <LLOY.L> took on 3.1 percent, HBOS <HBOS.L> added
2.4 percent, and Standard Chartered <STAN.L> gained 2.2 percent.
Insurers were also mixed after recent gains, with RSA
Insurance <RSA.L> losing 3.7 percent, while Aviva <AV.L> was the
top FTSE 100 riser, up 5.2 percent.
(Editing by David Cowell;)
