London's main stock index retreated five month high over stronger pound

London's main stock index retreated from its five-and-a-half month high as exporter stocks took a hit from a stronger pound after the European Union granted Theresa May a short extension to get lawmakers behind her proposed Brexit agreement.

The FTSE 100, whose constituents derive much of their revenue in U.S. dollars, dipped 0.2 per cent by 0814 GMT. The more domestically exposed FTSE 250 added 0.2 per cent. Weighing on the main index was drugmaker AstraZeneca , which hit a high in the last session on the pound's weakness; GlaxoSmithKline and Unilever.

Oil majors Shell and BP also dragged on the FTSE 100 as crude prices slipped. Outshining the index was engineering company Smiths Group, which advanced 3.4 per cent after it announced plans to separate its struggling healthcare unit and list it in the UK. The gains placed Smiths on course for its best day in more than four months.

The Brexit update also lifted housebuilders, which would suffer in an economy damaged in a disorderly departure from the EU. Barratt and Berkeley rose over 1 per cent. Among midcaps, Aggreko, the world's largest temporary power provider, jumped 6 per cent as brokerage Stifel upgraded the stock and said it saw a bigger impact than expected from strategic changes by new management.