Last checked at 
(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock
markets, click LIVE/ or type LIVE/ in a news window)
* UK house prices fall for first time since January
* 888 biggest mid-cap dragger as reopening hurts daily
revenue
* FTSE 100 up 0.7%, FTSE 250 adds 0.3%
(Updates to close)
By Amal S
July 7 (Reuters) - London's FTSE 100 ended higher on
Wednesday, helped by heavyweight mining and consumer staple
stocks, while data showed UK house prices fell for the first
time since January.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 rose 0.7%, led by base metal
stocks with miners including Rio Tinto,
Glencore, Anglo American and BHP up
between 2.6% and 3.1%.
British house prices in June fell in monthly terms for the
first time since January as the government prepared to scale
back its tax break for home-buyers, mortgage lender Halifax
said. However, they rose 8.8% in annual terms.
"There will be a slowdown as life returns to normal and
starts to eat into savings and workplaces evaluated their future
models," said Danni Hewson, financial analyst at AJ Bell.
"But current low interest rates coupled with the
availability of low deposit mortgages will prevent any kind of
bubble pop."
Homebuilder stocks have gained 1.5% so far this year on
rising home prices and demand for bigger homes, but have largely
underperformed the FTSE 100.
Cheap borrowing costs, higher commodity prices and
re-opening optimism have helped the FTSE 100 gain 10.6% so far
this year. However, the index has underperformed its European
and local mid-cap peers.
After being the top gainers in the morning, energy stocks
, down 0.6%, retreated to become the biggest drag
on the index amid volatility in oil markets.
"OPEC+ haven't been able get a deal together, initially
people thought it was a good news. But essentially it means that
they will come back with something and that reverse oil prices,"
said Keith Temperton, equity sales trader at Forte Securities.
Dollar-earning consumer staples stocks, including Unilever
, Reckitt Benckiser Group, British American
Tobacco and Diageo Plc rose between 0.7% and
1.5%, and were among the top gainers on weaker pound.
The domestically focussed mid-cap index gained 0.3%
British online betting firm 888 down 6.5%, was the
biggest drag on the mid-cap index after the company signalled
that a reopening of outdoor venues after coronavirus lockdowns
was hurting daily revenues in the country.
PageGroup and Robert Walters both gained
3.0% each after the British recruiters raised their annual
profit forecasts on increased hiring across their biggest
markets last month.
(Reporting by Shashank Nayar and Amal S in Bengaluru; Editing
by Subhranshu Sahu and David Gregorio)
