(Updates to market close)

* Spirax ( SPXSF ) slides on annual forecast despite strong first half

* Insurer L&G drops after UBS and Goldman Sachs cut ratings

* FTSE 350 insurers index falls 2.5%

Aug 11 (Reuters) - London's FTSE 100 index fell for a second

session on Tuesday as shares in Spirax ( SPXSF ) tumbled after the valve

maker's full-year guidance disappointed investors while Legal &

General ( LGGNF ) led a selloff in insurers after multiple brokerage

downgrades.

* The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed 0.17% down at

10,844.19 points while the mid-cap FTSE 250 rose 0.22%

to 24,799.75.

* Spirax ( SPXSF ) shares fell 5.6%, becoming the biggest

decliner in the FTSE 100, after the company maintained its

annual forecast despite improved first-half results.

* Shares in Legal & General ( LGGNF ) dropped 3.1% after UBS

and Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock to "sell" from "neutral".

UBS pointed to peak valuations, lower margins from its pension

risk transfer business and a falling solvency ratio among the

reasons for the downgrade.

* Oil prices rose after negotiations between the United

States and Iran over a peace deal and the reopening of the

Strait of Hormuz hit an impasse, lifting oil majors BP

and Shell by 1.8% and 2.2% respectively.

* An index of FTSE 350 insurers dropped 2.5%,

with shares of Standard Life ( PNXGF ) and Prudential

also pressured.

* Investors are awaiting U.S. inflation data on Wednesday as

well as second-quarter UK GDP data on Thursday to gauge the

monetary policy outlook on both sides of the Atlantic.

* British consumers spent more on food and in pubs last

month on the back of England's run to the World Cup semi-finals

and hot weather boosted clothing sales, but they remained wary

of big outlays, according to surveys published on Tuesday.

* The British Retail Consortium's total retail sales measure

rose by a below-average 1.3% from July 2025, slowing from 1.9%

in June.

* Among mid-cap stocks, Genuit slid 5.6% after

downbeat earnings hit by the Middle East conflict and wet

weather.

(Reporting by Anand Gopal and Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru;

Editing by Leroy Leo and David Goodman

)