STOCKS NEWS EUROPE-UK small caps track slide in blue-chips

The FTSE small cap index falls 0.7 percent while the junior-listed FTSE AIM All Share Index declines by 1 percent, broadly tracking a 1.2 percent slide on the blue-chip FTSE 100 index but slightly outperforming a 1.6 percent drop on the mid-cap index.

Fashion company Bonmarche avoids the broader market slump to gain by 1.2 percent after the group says in a trading update that it expects full-year results slightly ahead of the company's expectations, prompting brokerage Investec (LSE: INVP.L - news) to raise its price target on the stock to 315 pence from 300 pence.

"A pleasing end to the year with Bonmarché exceeding our expectations despite an unfavourable pre-Christmas and January/February market backdrop," Investec writes in a note.

The London-listed shares of Aquarius Platinum (Frankfurt: QPMC.F - news) fall 4.9 percent after the platinum producer's Australian-listed shares slumped 9.9 percent overnight as part of a broader sell-off on the Sydney stock market.

Reuters messaging rm://sudip.kargupta.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net