Glencore leads Britain's FTSE lower after results

* FTSE 100 down 0.9 pct

* Glencore (Xetra: A1JAGV - news) drops after profit fall

* Fellow miners knocked by China volatility

* Admiral jumps on forecast-beating results (Adds detail and quote)

By Liisa Tuhkanen and Alistair Smout

LONDON, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Britain's top share index fell on Wednesday, hit by growing anxiety over China's economy, with Glencore leading the mining sector lower after poorly-received results.

Miner and commodities trader Glencore dropped 8.6 percent, the top FTSE 100 faller, to a record low after it posted a 29 percent fall in first-half earnings due to a slide in metal and oil prices.

The fall came despite reporting a decrease in debt.

"Unless commodity prices improve materially, the company's balance sheet remains under considerable pressure in our view," analysts at Investec Securities said in a note.

The mining sector dropped 3.2 percent to its lowest since 2009, hit by weaker metals prices as fears grow that demand from China -- the world's largest metals consumer -- will take a hit.

Anglo American (LSE: AAL.L - news) , BHP Billiton (NYSE: BBL - news) and Rio Tinto (LSE: RIO.L - news) fell between 3 and 1.8 percent.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index was down 59.74 points, or 0.9 percent lower at 6,466.55 points by 1109 GMT. It (Other OTC: ITGL - news) closed 0.4 percent lower on Tuesday, more than 8 percent below a record high of 7,122.74 points hit in April.

China's stock markets tumbled and soared on Wednesday despite government efforts to stabilise them, although they ended higher after the central bank injected more funds into the financial system for the second day in a row.

Fears over the state of China's economy, the second-largest in the world, have come to eclipse those over Greece's debt problems in recent weeks, with China's devaluation of its yuan currency on Aug. 11 adding to concerns.

"The general sentiment is fairly skittish at the moment, and the outlook for China certainly hasn't helped," said Richard Hunter, head of equities at Hargreaves Lansdown (LSE: HL.L - news) .

"The FTSE 100 is actually in negative territory for the year as we speak, and it's quite difficult to see from here what sort of short-term positive impetus the market might take."

The index has declined 1.8 percent since the start of the year.

Leading the few blue-chip gainers, British insurer Admiral jumped 4.9 percent after posting a forecast-beating 1 percent rise in first-half pre-tax profits, helped by growing customer numbers and lower than expected claims.

Pharmaceutical firm Hikma rose 4.6 percent after maintaining guidance for full-year revenue growth despite revenue falling in the first half of the year.

Among small caps, North Sea-focused oil producer Enquest (LSE: ENQ.L - news) 's shares dropped 5.2 percent after it reported a 34 percent decline in profit before tax and net costs for the first half of the financial year.

(Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)