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According to Reuters, the index slipped on the back of news that government bond yields in the US have increased, which resulted in falls on Wall Street markets.
The FTSE was down 47.24 points to 4,368.99 at 09:21 BST, with banks, miners and commodity firms all weighing on the index.
Royal Dutch Shell and BP slid by 0.3 per cent and 0.6 per cent respectively, while HSBC, Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group, Royal Bank of Scotland and Standard Chartered dropped by between 0.9 per cent and two per cent.
However, producers of precious metals fared better due to prices remaining steady, with Randgold Resources and Fresnillo adding 0.2 per cent and 1.6 per cent each.
Market strategist Joshua Raymond explained that there has been "widespread" selling across all markets during the morning session,
"Rising bond yields in the US have served as a reality check to the wider market," he added.
