FTSE 100, FTSE 250 off 0.6
Energy stocks outperform
AO World to close German business; shares fall

June 9 Reuters UK39;s FTSE 100 slipped for a third straight session on Thursday, as cautious investors braced for the impact of more interest rate hikes ahead of a key European Central Bank meeting later in the day.

The bluechip index and the midcap FTSE 250 index were down 0.6 each.

The ECB in a decision due at 1145 a.m. GMT is likely to announce it is pulling the plug on years of stimulus and signal a string of rate rises to fight surging inflation.

Although no action is expected with regards to interest rates, participants may be on the lookout for hints over how the bank plans to move in months to come, said Charalambos Pissouros, head of research at JFD Brokers.

Investors have ramped up bets of rate hikes by the ECB and the Federal Reserve in recent days, which is negative for equities, Pissouros added.

Asian shares declined, while broader European stocks were down 0.8 and U.S. bond yields inched up.

Energy was the sole sector in the black, rising 0.3, as crude prices cheered China39;s strongerthanexpected May exports but soon gave up most of the gains.

UK39;s energy shares have outperformed by a wide margin so far this year, surging 63 driven by a commodity price rally, while most other sectors have declined as threats of a slowdown loom large.

Britain39;s housing market showed signs of a slowdown last month, as fastrising inflation and higher rates…