LONDON (AFP) ? Stocks ended the day sharply lower on Wednesday, hit by Greece's ongoing debt crisis, while London's financial sector fell as the government appeared set to back plans to overhaul major banks.
The benchmark FTSE 100 index of top shares closed 1.04 percent down at 5,742.55 points.
Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne is set to endorse a call for banks to ring-fence retail operations from their investment arms to avoid another financial crisis, a treasury source said.
Osborne will make the announcement in a high-profile annual address to business leaders in central London at 1830 GMT.
Lloyds Banking Group (LBG) was the most widely traded stock of the day, with 125 million shares changing hands, followed by Vodafone, which saw 93.8 million units switch owners.
TUI Travel was the best blue-chip performer, rising 1.8 percent -- or 3.8 pence -- to finish at 215.1, followed by hotel and restaurant group Whitbread, which rose just 0.59 percent -- or 9 pence -- to finish at 1,536.
Swiss commodities group Glencore was the biggest faller for the second straight day, shedding 5.4 percent -- or 27 pence -- to close at 473.
It was followed by oil and gas services firm Petrofac, which slipped 3.56 percent -- or 56 pence -- to finish at 1,515.
On the currency markets, a pound was worth 1.6216 dollars at 17:03 BST, down from 1.6385 at the same time Tuesday, while it stood at 1.1397 euros, up from 1.1321 over the same period.
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