UK Stocks-Factors to watch on December 11

Dec 11 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening lower on Thursday, with futures

BP: BP BP.L, Woodside Energy and Chevron CVX.N were the top winners at the U.S. government's first sale of oil and gas drilling rights in the Gulf of Mexico since 2023.

PRUDENTIAL: Prudential PRU.L said it has sold a 4.5% stake in ICICI Prudential Asset Management IICL.NS for 49 billion rupees (about $545 million) ahead of the Indian fund manager's $1.2 billion IPO that opens on Friday.

HOUSING MARKET: Britain's housing market slowed after finance minister Rachel Reeves' budget last month, according to a survey of chartered surveyors that showed buyer enquiries falling at the fastest rate in over two years.

OIL: Oil prices were broadly stable as investors shifted their focus back to Russia-Ukraine peace talks while watching for any fallout from a U.S. seizure of a sanctioned tanker off the coast of Venezuela.

METALS: Copper outperformed its base metal peers supported by a softer dollar after the U.S. Federal Reserve cut interest rates.

GOLD: Gold eased pulling back from a near one-week high, after the U.S. Federal Reserve delivered a divided interest rate cut.

FTSE: Britain's blue-chip FTSE 100 closed up 0.1% on Wednesday, supported by gains in banking stocks as investors awaited the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rate decision.

EX-DIVS: Associated British Foods ABF.L will trade without entitlement to its latest dividend pay-out on Thursday.

UK CORPORATE DIARY:

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