Britain's FTSE 100 falls as Glencore hits fresh record low

* FTSE slips 0.1 percent

* Glencore (Xetra: A1JAGV - news) knocked by low coal prices

* Commodities, Fed meeting in focus

* Kingfisher (LSE: KGF.L - news) shares fall after H1 results (Recasts, adds detail, quote)

By Alistair Smout and Sudip Kar-Gupta

LONDON, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Britain's top equity index slipped on Tuesday, led lower by Glencore which hit another all-time low as concerns over commodity prices continued to pile pressure on the stock.

Mining and commodities trader Glencore fell 4.7 percent, touching its record low, after news that three leading global thermal coal price benchmarks have fallen below levels last seen during the global financial crisis of 2008-2009.

Coal prices have been knocked by a sharp slowdown in demand, especially in Asia, and by stubbornly high mining output.

Other miners also fell, with the sector down 1.6 percent as copper hit a one-week low. However traders said that Glencore's exposure to coal would ensure its shares, which have fallen to a series of record lows since July, bore the brunt of the day's selling.

"The frequency with which Glencore has been the top FTSE faller in recent weeks is worrying to investors. The underlying commodity market is offering precious little refuge for them," Alastair McCaig, market analyst at IG (LSE: IGG.L - news) , said.

"The fact they straddle so many different production spheres within commodities has meant they're getting hit most days, and the sentiment towards them is weak."

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index declined by 0.1 percent to 6,080.71 points by 1121 GMT. The FTSE hit a record high of 7,122.74 points in April but has since been hit by signs of an economic slowdown in China and the prospect of a Fed rate rise, with commodity stocks leading the falls.

Traders said volumes were likely to remain light before a U.S (Other OTC: UBGXF - news) . Federal Reserve meeting on Sept. 17 at which it will decide on whether or not to raise interest rates for the first time since 2006.

"Conditions in China and the "emerging world" also call for great caution on the part of the Fed, with fears that financial markets could react poorly if rates are increased prematurely or without a sound rationale," strategists at Amundi said in a note.

A U.S. rate hike could put pressure on the Bank of England to follow suit. Higher rates often hurt stock markets by boosting the appeal of bonds and cash, where returns have been hit by the record low interest rates set by major world central banks since the 2008 global financial crisis.

However, tightening by the Bank of England was seen as less likely after British annual inflation fell back to zero in August, ensuring price growth remained far slower than the central bank's target.

In other stock movers, home improvements retailer Kingfisher (Amsterdam: KF6.AS - news) retreated 2.7 percent after a fall in first-half adjusted pre-tax profits.

However, chip designer ARM rose 2.4 percent after it said trading was in line, while credit information company Experian (Other OTC: EXPGF - news) advanced 1.1 percent after HSBC upgraded it to "buy" from "hold". (Editing by Dominic Evans)