UPDATE 1-Trade fears, weak earnings keep FTSE 100 shackled

Britain's FTSE 100 inched lower on Wednesday as uncertainty over the U.S.-China trade talks, a weak dollar and dull earnings updates left the index hovering near six-week lows.

The main index was down 0.1 percent by 0843 GMT. The FTSE 250 was up 0.3 percent, helped by gains in industrial and oil stocks.

Investors remained tentative before Chinese Vice Premier Liu He arrived in Washington to try to salvage a trade deal. Asia-exposed HSBC was among the biggest drags on the FTSE 100. "Investors have been banking on some kind of deal happening this year, but it looks less likely now than at any moment in the last year," Markets.com analyst Neil Wilson said.

The dollar was weaker as concerns that the trade deal could unravel mounted. Shares of major exporters fell as a result. Imperial Brands affirmed its full-year forecast, but the tobacco company's shares fell 4.2 percent to a more than five-year low on weaker-than-expected sales of e-cigarettes.

"Imperial's valuation is one that continues to reflect little market conviction in hitting its target," Jefferies analysts said, expressing concerns over the apparent lack of acceleration in next generation product sales. Broadcaster ITV was 3.7 percent lower after it said the late timing of Easter and political and economic uncertainty led to weaker advertising demand in the first quarter.

Direct Line Insurance shed 1.8 percent after Britain's largest motor insurer reported a drop in quarterly gross written premiums. Sainsbury's slipped 1.3 percent after BofA Merrill Lynch cut its rating to "neutral", citing recent underperformance. Peers Marks & Spencer and Ocado were about 1.5 percent lower.

Investors came back to oil stocks after a sell-off in the last session, helping contain some losses. Leading the mid-cap index higher was Travis Perkins, Britain's largest distributor of building materials. It gained 3.2 percent on higher quarterly underlying sales.

However, pub group Wetherspoon was on course for its worst day in six months as it tumbled 3.8 percent after its trading update triggered concerns over mounting costs and margin pressure. (Reporting by Shashwat Awasthi and Muvija M in Bengaluru; Editing by Larry King and Andrew Cawthorne)