* FTSE 100 index sheds 0.6 percent
* Miners, oils fall on Libyan turmoil
* Banks higher; Barclays boosted by Lehman decision
LONDON, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Britain's top share index fell in early trade on Wednesday, dragged down by oil majors and mining stocks on concerns that turmoil in Libya could spread to other oil producers in the region and stall global growth.
At 0906 GMT, the FTSE 100 index was down 38.75 points, or 0.7 percent, at 5,958.01, extending its declines into a fourth straight session, losing over 2 percent in that period.
Weakness in integrated oil majors was the biggest drag on the FTSE 100 index, with BP shedding 1 percent and Royal Dutch Shell down 0.8 percent.
After strong gains in the past few weeks the energy sector was unsettled by the impact of the unrest in Libya, which has cut oil supplies from the OPEC nation.
"The situation in Libya looks to be the most dangerous of the revolts that has rocked North Africa and the Middle East so far this year, certainly in terms of market impact," said Mic Mills, head of electronic trading at ETX Capital.
"There is little else to provide any respite, so investors are beating a retreat from riskier assets such as equities."
A defiant Muammar Gaddafi said he was ready to die "a martyr" in Libya, vowing to crush a growing revolt which has seen eastern regions break free of his 41-year rule and brought deadly unrest to the capital.
Crude prices held near a 2-1/2 year high although OPEC and the International Energy issued assurances on Tuesday that they would act should there be a supply shortage.
Heavyweight miners were also under pressure as copper prices fell back with investors fleeing riskier assets as the violence in Libya stoked fears over stalling global growth.
Antofagasta was the one of the biggest sector fallers, down 1.7 percent.
The biggest individual blue-chip faller was beverage can maker Rexam, down 3.7 percent after posting full-year results, with investors banking recent gains in the stock.
BANKS BUOYANT
Firmer banks provided the main support for the bluechips, with the sector led higher by Barclays, up 5.7 percent following a positive court decision in the U.S.
Lehman Brothers' hurried sale of much of its U.S. operations to Barclays at the height of the financial crisis was fair, and its bankruptcy estate is not entitled to recover an $11 billion "windfall," a federal judge ruled.
Barclays gained in spite of trading ex-dividend.
Reckitt Benckiser, down 2.1 percent, was the only other blue-chip losing its dividend attractions on Wednesday.
Global lender HSBC was also a strong gainer, up 0.5 percent ahead of its full-year results due next week.
Defensively perceived issues provided the other main FTSE 100 gainers, with utilities standing out led by Scottish & Southern Energy up 1.0 percent, while cigarettes maker Imperial Tobacco added 0.3 percent.
Investors were awaiting the publication of minutes from February's Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee meeting, scheduled for release at 0930 GMT.
The BoE should not allow fears of rising inflation expectations to drive it to an increase in interest rates that could potentially cause deflation, policymaker Adam Posen said. (Editing by Erica Billingham)