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* FTSE 100 up 0.3%, FTSE 250 adds 0.5%

Dec 19 (Reuters) - The UK's FTSE 100 rose on Tuesday, with real estate stocks leading the gains, as investors assessed persisting hopes of interest rate cuts from the U.S. Federal Reserve and braced for more economic data due later this week.

As of 0819 GMT, the blue-chip FTSE 100 was up 0.3%, while the more domestically focussed FTSE 250 midcap index added 0.5%.

Rate-sensitive real estate, real estate investment trusts and homebuilders rose between 0.8% and 1%.

San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said cuts to the U.S. central bank's benchmark rate are likely to be appropriate next year because of an improvement in inflation this year, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Focus will remain on further economic data, leading with the UK and the U.S. inflation prints this week, while a euro zone reading is due later in the day.

Across other major markets, the Bank of Japan maintained its ultra-loose monetary settings in a widely expected move.

Among individual stocks, Superdry slumped 18.9% after the British fashion retailer flagged a hit to annual profits as sales were "significantly below" the management's expectations.

(Reporting by Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)