FTSE 100 hits two-week low as banks, oil majors slide

(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock markets, click or type LIVE/ in a news window) * FTSE 100 down 1.3%, FTSE 250 down 1.6% * Financial stocks slump * Low oil prices hurt energy stocks * Industrial stocks fall tracking European counterparts * Pearson jumps on stronger growth forecasts Oct 17 (Reuters) - London's benchmark index hit a two-week low on Friday, weighed down by losses in oil majors and heavyweight lenders that joined a global selloff in financial stocks on concerns over the health of U.S regional banks.

(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock markets, click or type LIVE/ in a news window) *

FTSE 100 down 1.3%, FTSE 250 down 1.6% *

Financial stocks slump *

Low oil prices hurt energy stocks *

Industrial stocks fall tracking European counterparts *

Pearson jumps on stronger growth forecasts Oct 17 (Reuters) -

London's benchmark index hit a two-week low on Friday, weighed down by losses in oil majors and heavyweight lenders that joined a global selloff in financial stocks on concerns over the health of U.S regional banks. The benchmark FTSE 100 fell 1.3% to 9,310 points as of 1017 GMT, while the domestically focused FTSE 250 dropped 1.6% to 21,643.

Both indexes were on course for their second consecutive week of losses. The index of banking sector shed nearly 3%. HSBC, Barclays and Standard Chartered fell 1.9%, 5.3% and 4.6% respectively.

The investment banks and brokerages index fell 2%; brokerage ICG shed 6.4%, the biggest decline in the FTSE 100. Among U.S. regional banks, Zions Bancorporation disclosed a $50 million hit from two loans from its California unit, while Western Alliance said it had initiated a lawsuit alleging fraud by Cantor Group V, LLC, fuelling worries about credit quality.

Wall Street futures pointed to a weaker open on Friday following Thursday's drop. On the FTSE 100, oil majors BP and Shell declined 2.7% and 0.9%, respectively, weighing heavily on the index, as global risk-off mood hurt oil prices.

Britain's economy returned to growth in August, data on Thursday showed. Separately, the International Monetary Fund earlier this week said UK's economy is on course for the second-fastest growth among the Group of Seven nations in 2025 after the U.S. The aerospace and defense index dropped 3.1%, tracking losses in their European counterparts.

Among individual stocks, Pearson gained 5.3% to the top of FTSE 100 as the education company expects stronger sales growth in the fourth quarter. Man Group gained 4% after the hedge fund's growth in assets under management surpassed expectations.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)