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At 11:49 GMT, the index was down 0.3 per cent, Reuters reports, after a dip in crude oil prices led to BG Group, Cairn Energy, Royal Dutch Shell and BP sliding by as much as 0.8 per cent.
The biggest faller was retailer Marks & Spencer, which was down 4.9 per cent after revealing it is uncertain about trading in 2010, even though it saw sales rise during its third fiscal quarter.
Kingfisher and Home Retail were also lower, along with food stores such as Tesco and Sainsbury's, however Next added 0.1 per cent.
Defensive firms gained, with British American Tobacco and Imperial Tobacco rising 0.4 per cent and 0.5 per cent respectively and BT Group posting a 1.6 per cent increase.
Imperial Tobacco was recently singled out by Luke Newman of Gartmore, who told the Guardian that the company would be one to watch in 2010.
Posted by Clive Arneil
