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It was 1.6 per cent down at 12:37 GMT, Reuters reports, taking the index to 5,226.05 points.
Royal Bank of Scotland recorded one of the largest falls, retreating by 8.8 per cent on the news that its stock has received a downgrade from WestLB.
Elsewhere in the financial sector, Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group and Standard Chartered were down by up to 3.5 per cent, while mining firms Lonmin, Rio Tinto, Xstrata and BHP Billiton were among the mining firms that saw their shares slide.
The fact that many investors are awaiting the release of the Pre-Budget Report before making any purchases means trading is likely to be "largely uneventful", observed market strategist Joshua Raymond, adding that there was no US data being released today that may have altered the market.
This is the second time this week that the FTSE has been lower in the morning session of trading, as it had dropped by 0.5 per cent at midday yesterday.
Posted by Chris Weaver
