FTSE retreats slightly from record high on broker downgrades

* Blue-chip FTSE 100 index down 0.1 pct

* Index hovers around 7,000 points after hitting highs

* Carnival (LSE: CCL.L - news) drops ahead of earnings after downgrade

* Standard Chartered (HKSE: 2888.HK - news) extends last week's rally

By Atul Prakash and Alistair Smout

LONDON, March 23 (Reuters) - Britain's blue-chip share index edged down after setting a new record high above the 7,000 mark on Monday, with companies such as Carnival and Weir slipping after broker downgrades.

Engineering company Weir Group fell 3 percent to 1,786 pence, the top faller in the FTSE 100 index, after RBC downgraded it to "sector perform" from "top pick" as well as cutting its price target to 1,850 pence from 2,150 pence.

The benchmark FTSE index was down 0.1 percent, at 7,017.13 points by 1149 GMT after briefly hitting 7,027.33. The index has gained nearly 7 percent this year.

The market has been spurred higher by signals from the U.S. Federal Reserve that an expected rate hike could be later than investors had anticipated, while Bank of England officials have also struck a more dovish tone in recent statements.

"We are nervous of buying into a rally that is less about improved corporate earnings forecasts, and more about delving into the tea leaves of statements from the U.S. Fed," deVere Group international investment strategist, Tom Elliott, said.

Highlighting some of the earnings issues, Deutsche cut cruise-operator Carnival to "hold" from "buy" ahead of results due on March 27. The bank said currency volatility could affect the company's earnings. Its shares fell 2.2 percent.

"We remain positive on (Carnival) as we think the medium term earnings recovery potential remains intact, however with only 5 percent upside to our 34 pound price target we move our recommendation to hold," Deutsche Bank (LSE: 0H7D.L - news) analysts said in a note.

Among other top movers, Standard Chartered was the top FTSE 100 performer, rising 6.8 percent to take gains in the last week to more than 20 percent since the middle of March on the back of positive broker comments.

Citi and JP Morgan were the latest to upgrade the Asia-focused bank on Monday, with Citi welcoming the appointment of Bill Winters as the bank's new CEO, saying he can unlock value in a stock that dropped nearly 30 percent in 2014.

Among mid-cap companies, gold miner Centamin (Toronto: CEE.TO - news) rose 15 percent after declaring a higher-than-expected dividend despite reporting a 29-percent fall in full-year core profit.

The miner, which said its profit was hurt by falling gold prices, stated that its policy was to return about 15-30 percent of its free cash flow to shareholders. (Editing by Louise Ireland)