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* Admiral top FTSE 100 gainer on higher profit forecast
* Daily Mail climbs on possible buyout
* AstraZeneca gives biggest boost after Jefferies hikes PT
* FTSE 100 adds 0.1%, FTSE 250 slips 0.1%
(Updates to close)
By Shashank Nayar
July 12 (Reuters) - London's FTSE 100 ended higher on Monday
as gains in insurance stocks led by Admiral Group outweighed
weakness in heavyweight energy and mining stocks, while concerns
over a rise in coronavirus infections in Britain kept gains in
check.
Admiral rose 3.9% to the top of the FTSE 100 after
the British motor insurer said it was on track for a
higher-than-expected first-half profit due to lower motor
accident claims during pandemic lockdowns.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 ended 0.1% higher, with
non-life insurers, healthcare and
real estate stocks gaining the most.
AstraZeneca gave the biggest boost to the FTSE 100
after brokerage Jefferies raised its price target on the stock,
while Thailand said it would use the drugmaker's vaccine as a
second dose for those who received Sinovac's shot as
their first dose in a bid to increase protection.
England will go ahead with plans to lift almost all legal
restrictions on day-to-day life on July 19, health minister
Sajid Javid said on Monday.
"There still seems to be a great deal of uncertainty
prevailing over the rate of increase in Delta variant cases, and
the prospect of a much slower re-opening process, as governments
try to win the race between vaccines and accelerating case
numbers," said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC
Markets.
Concerns over a recent jump in UK coronavirus infections
have kept the FTSE 100 range-bound near 7,100, limiting further
gains and also leading the index to largely underperform its
local mid-cap peer.
Daily Mail and General Trust Plc climbed 3.3%
after the founding family and leading investor in the publisher
said it was considering taking the group private in a $1.1
billion deal.
The domestically focussed mid-cap index inched 0.1%
lower with travel and leisure stocks falling the
most.
(Reporting by Shashank Nayar in Bengaluru
Editing by Subhranshu Sahu and Mark Potter)
