UPDATE 2-UK mid-caps drop at end of strong week as Brexit deal remains elusive

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* Just hours left for a Brexit trade deal - EU's Barnier
* Lockdown hit UK retail sales in November
* Restaurant Group tumbles on first quarter warning
* FTSE 100 down 0.33%, FTSE 250 off 0.89%

(Updates to market close)
By Medha Singh
Dec 18 (Reuters) - British mid-caps eased on Friday from a
10 month high on profit taking as the clock ticked down towards
the end of Britain's transition period for leaving the European
Union with a trade deal still not secured.
The domestically focused FTSE 250 .FTMC , considered a
barometer for Brexit sentiment, dropped about 0.9%, but finished
the last full week of the year up 2.5%.
Autos .FTNMX3350 , real estate .FTUB8600 and banking
stocks .FTNMX8350 posted some of the steepest percentage
losses.
The European Union said there were just hours left to strike
a trade deal, while Britain called on the bloc to see sense as
the two sides race to prevent a turbulent finale to the Brexit
crisis at the end of the month. "Both U.S. stimulus talks and UK/EU trade talks move into
the final straits, with both threatening to stretch into the
weekend and perhaps beyond, pushing the deadlines, as well as
the patience of the markets, to the limit," said Michael Hewson,
chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK.
Uncertainty over a post-Brexit deal pushed the
exporter-heavy FTSE 100 .FTSE down 0.3% as U.S. stocks dipped
on a cooling fiscal stimulus-led rally. GBP/
The UK stock market has tracked a global rally this year
following the coronavirus-led crash in March, but both the FTSE
250 and FTSE 100 have lagged their European and U.S.
counterparts on fears of a long road to pre-pandemic levels of
UK economic growth.
Data on Friday showed UK retail sales fell 3.8% on the month
in November, when a four-week lockdown in England closed stores
selling non-essential goods. In company news, Frankie and Benny's owner The Restaurant
Group RTN.L shed about 6% after it warned of a tough first
quarter. Fashion retailer Next NXT.L dropped 2% as a report said it
was in talks with U.S. investment firm Davidson Kempner Capital
Management for a joint bid to gain control of Arcadia fashion
group, which collapsed into administration last month.