* FTSE 100 index down 0.1 percent
* Retailers reverse after data; Kingfisher up after results
* Miners down with metal prices; energy issues higher
By Jon Hopkins
LONDON, Sept 16 (Reuters) - Britain's top shares were modestly lower at midday on Thursday, as weakness in heavyweight mining issues countered strength in energy stocks, and retailers went into reverse after weak sales data from the UK high street.
By 1054 GMT The FTSE 100 was 5.81 points lower at 5,549.75, having fallen 0.2 percent in the previous session. That was its first daily decline in five sessions after hitting a four-month high of 5,567.41 on Tuesday.
"We have key indices near significant resistance levels and traders are watching with bated breath to see if markets can push on and break out of their current ranges," said Joshua Raymond, market strategist at City Index.
"If they do so, there is every chance that September could maintain its unusual bullish form to be a very good month for equities but there is a big question mark on this," he added.
Thursday's domestic macroeconomic data provided few reasons for optimism.
British retail sales volumes fell last month for the first time since January, in a sign that consumer demand may be slipping ahead of planned government spending cuts, official data showed on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the Bank of England said inflation expectations for the next 12 months rose to 3.4 percent last month, up from 3.3 percent in May the highest rate since August 2008, just before the financial crisis really hit hard.
And the CBI's monthly industrial trends survey showed its total order book balance fell slightly in September to -17, down from -14 in August, below expectations of an improvement to -13.
Retailers retreated after the disappointing data from the high street, with Marks & Spencer, Next, and Home Retail Group losing 0.2 to 1.0 percent.
But DIY retailer Kingfisher held firm, up 2.6 percent after its first-half profit beat forecasts, boosted by cost-cutting and business improvements that it said would help it cope with a tough consumer outlook.
Energy firms provided the main underlying fuel to limit the blue chip decline, with the crude price weaker but holding above $75 per barrel. BP, a big faller on Wednesday, added 1.9 percent, while Royal Dutch Shell gained 1.4 percent, and Cairn Energy firmed 0.6 percent.
ICAP KNOCKED
Inter-dealer broker Icap was the top FTSE 100 faller, down 3.3 percent, with Panmure Gordon cutting its rating for the firm to "hold" from "buy", one day after a downgrade by UBS.
BT Group was also knocked by a broker downgrade, shedding 3.0 percent as Morgan Stanley cut its rating for the telecoms carrier to "equal-weight" from "overweight", citing concerns over the company's pension fund.
By contrast, telecoms peer Cable & Wireless Worldwide added 3.78 percent as Goldman Sachs raised its rating to "buy" from "neutral", saying it could attract M&A interest.
Miner Eurasian Natural Resources was the top blue chip riser, up 4.4 percent, after Credit Suisse upped its rating to "outperform" from "neutral".
But other miners were under pressure, with Xstrata and Rio Tinto down 0.3 and 0.6 percent respectively, hindered by weaker metal prices as the dollar continued to rise after Bank of Japan intervention on Monday to curb the strength of the yen.
And engineer Rolls Royce fell 1.5 percent after Boeing said on Wednesday that it had a serious problem with a Rolls-Royce engine on one of its 787 Dreamliner aircraft, requiring it to be replaced.
U.S. futures pointed to a weak start on Wall Street on Thursday, with investors awaiting another batch of data.
Both weekly jobless claims numbers and the U.S. Producer Price index for August will be released at 1230 GMT, although most attention was reversed for Friday's U.S. CPI report.
(Editing by Elaine Hardcastle)