REFILE-FTSE higher as M&A talk picks up, China data helps

(Refiles to move extraneous word in fourth paragraph and add dropped word 'company')

* FTSE 100 up 1.5 percent

* Cable & Wireless Worldwide up on bid talk - traders

* TUI Travel up on report shareholder TUI AG mulling bid

By Tricia Wright

LONDON, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Britain's top share index was higher by midday on Wednesday, helped by a pick-up in M&A talk and with investor sentiment buoyed by firm economic data from China.

By 1104 GMT, the FTSE 100 <.FTSE> was up 78.13 points, or 1.5 percent, at 5,303.35, after rising 0.5 percent on Tuesday.

"(M&A talk) is certainly helping the market higher. But the FTSE is up on low volume," Manoj Ladwa, senior trader at ETX Capital, said.

Cable & Wireless Worldwide <CWP.L> rose 5.5 percent, with traders citing market talk of bid interest from U.S. rival AT&T <T.N>. The British company would not comment.

TUI Travel <TT.L> also notched up good gains, up 5.4 percent after the Financial Times Deutschland reported majority shareholder TUI AG <TUIGn.DE> was considering buying the shares in the company it does not already own. [ID:nLDE6800MZ] [ID:nLDE6800M1]

TUI Travel also went ex-dividend on Wednesday.

Miners were in demand, led up by Fresnillo <FRES.L>, up 3.7 percent, fighting just shy of an all-time peak set in July as well-worn talk of bid interest from Mexican Tycoon Carlos Slim was aired again in the Daily Mail's market report.

The sector <.FTNMX1770> was lifted as metals prices rose on the back of a rebound in manufacturing in China, the world's largest consumer of metals. [ID:nBJB003928]

China's official purchasing managers' index rose to 51.7 in August from a 17-month low of 51.2 in July, while Australia's economy grew a stronger than expected 1.2 percent in the second quarter. [ID:nBJB003928] [ID:nSYU010570]

TELECOMS BOOSTED

Telecoms firms pushed higher, boosted by Vivendi <VIV.PA>, Europe's largest telecom and entertainment group, which raised its annual profit target after first-half results beat forecasts. [ID:nLDE67N1NR]

Inmarsat <ISA.L> put on 2.6 percent, while Vodafone <VOD.L> was 0.8 percent firmer.

Land Securities <LAND.L> climbed 2.6 percent after JPMorgan Cazenove named the property company its top large cap pick and raised its rating on the stock to "overweight" from "neutral".

Positive broker sentiment also gave Intercontinental Hotels <IHG.L> a lift, up 2.9 percent, with Morgan Stanley lifting its rating on the firm to "overweight" from "equal-weight", saying it was undervalued and has strong prospects, especially in Asia.

Dampening the mood, growth in Britain's manufacturing sector slowed more than expected last month, led by the weakest expansion in new orders for more than a year, a purchasing managers' survey showed. [ID:nLDE6800QB]

U.S. data being watched will include U.S. ADP National Employment statistics ahead of non-farm payrolls due out on Friday. Construction spending and ISM manufacturing PMI will also be in focus, when they are released at 1400 GMT. (Editing by Dan Lalor)