LONDON, March 16 (Reuters) - Shares in British gamblingcompanies such as Ladbrokes and William Hill rose on Wednesday, with traders citing relief that the Britishbudget did not unveil any strict, new taxes on the sector.
"No tax hikes, so positive for the sector," said Securequitysales trader Jawaid Afsar.
Ladbrokes' shares rose as much as 8.8 percent beforesettling back to stand 4.9 percent higher by 1400 GMT.
William Hill's shares rose 3.3 percent while shares in PaddyPower Betfair also advanced 1.7 percent. (Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Alasdair Pal, editing byAlistair Smout)