* FTSE 100 up 0.1%, FTSE 250 up 0.2%
* U.S., China give positive feelers ahead of deal signing
* Gambling stocks fall on rule banning credit card use
* Centamin falls after Endeavour abandons bid
* Boohoo climbs to fresh record
(Adds company news items, updates share moves)
By Shashwat Awasthi and Muvija M
Jan 14 (Reuters) - London's main index ended a choppy
Tuesday session with slight gains, as investors looked towards
the signing of the Phase 1 U.S.-China trade deal, while betting
firms lost ground after Britain banned consumers from using
credit cards to gamble.
The FTSE 100 closed 0.1% higher. The FTSE 250
rose 0.2%, driven by a 9.2% jump in miniature wargame
maker Games Workshop after reporting record profit and
sales.
Ahead of the interim trade deal on Wednesday, a source said
China would ramp up purchases of cars, aircraft and energy
supplies from the United States. Separately, Washington said
Beijing should no longer be designated a currency manipulator.
"A little bit of risk-off across the board ... as investors
look towards next steps in terms of U.S.-China trade. There's no
one catalyst apart from general profit-taking ahead of the start
of earnings season in the U.S.," CMC Markets analyst Michael
Hewson said.
Homebuilder Taylor Wimpey was the second-best
performer on the FTSE 100, rising 4% after a trading update
showed that its order book surged 22% in 2019, aided by the
government's Help to Buy scheme.
Meanwhile, gambling firms Flutter Entertainment
and William Hill gave up 1.2% and 2.5%, respectively, on
Britain's new rule designed to prevent consumers from building
up too much debt.
Other industry players GVC and 888 recouped
earlier losses to end marginally higher.
Shares of Elementis slid 14.7% to the bottom of the
midcaps after the speciality chemicals company warned of a lower
2019 profit. The stock recorded its steepest one-day fall since
mid-2015.
Another significant faller was gold miner Centamin,
which lost 7% on its worst day since early December after
Canadian company Endeavour Mining scrapped plans to
take over the London group.
AIM-listed online fashion retailer Boohoo advanced
5% to a record high after reporting robust performance in its
Christmas trading period and hiking its full-year forecast.
"Boohoo continues to defy the broader gloom on the High
Street thanks to its appeal among younger shoppers, its tight
marketing and laser focus around celebs and social media,"
Markets.com analyst Neil Wilson said.
(Reporting by Shashwat Awasthi and Muvija M in Bengaluru;
Editing by Shailesh Kuber; Anil D'Silva and Alison Williams)