May 13 (Reuters) - UK stocks ended higher on Wednesday,

recovering from a sluggish start as gains in industrial miners

and banks helped offset concerns over domestic political

uncertainty.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed 0.58% higher,

while the mid-cap FTSE 250 rose 0.28%. Industrial miners

rose 4.36% and banks advanced

1.44%, rebounding from a day earlier.

Intertek ( IKTSF ) was one of the top gainers on the FTSE

100, closing 5.28% higher after the product testing company said

on Wednesday it was ready to recommend a 9.4 billion pound

($12.7 billion) takeover proposal by Swedish private equity

group EQT.

The gains helped reassure investors unsettled by the Middle

East impasse, rising oil prices and fresh uncertainty over Prime

Minister Keir Starmer's future.

Health Minister Wes Streeting is ‌preparing to resign and

could quit as early as Thursday, the Times reported on

Wednesday, adding that ​he is likely to mount a ​formal

challenge for the party leadership.

That came despite Starmer's plea to voters and his party's

lawmakers to stick with him and avoid a leadership contest he

said would only bring chaos.

"The Prime Minister may be 'forced' to step down if enough

ministers resign. His defenestration seems to be a matter of

when rather than if," said Robert Wood, chief UK economist at

Pantheon Macroeconomics.

Investors were also worried that a potential successor to

Starmer might advocate for increased spending, despite Britain's

already strained finances.

"The likely replacements would probably not be as fiscally

disciplined. A discretionary loosening in fiscal policy is on

the way regardless of who is PM," said Ruth Gregory, deputy

chief UK economist at Capital Economics.

Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump's state visit to

China for talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping is in focus.

Trump told reporters he does not need Beijing's help to end

the war with Iran, but the high-stakes meeting is expected to

include discussions on trade, Taiwan and Iran.

Separately, data released on Wednesday showed that U.S.

producer prices increased more than expected in April, posting

their biggest gain since early 2022.