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UK service firms report second month of growth - PMI
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Wood Group climbs after Apollo sweetens bid
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AstraZeneca gains on positive late-stage trial results
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Defensive stocks boost FTSE 100
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FTSE 100 up 0.4%, FTSE 250 off 1.1%
(Updates prices to market close; adds comment, details)
By Sruthi Shankar and Shristi Achar A
April 5 (Reuters) - The UK's FTSE 100 rose on Wednesday
after data showed that the dominant service sector in March
reported the strongest new business expansion in a year, while
shares of drugmaker AstraZeneca climbed to the top of the
benchmark index.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 rose 0.4%, outperforming the broader European markets, as defensive sectors including pharmaceuticals and consumer staples gained. "The market's just being attracted to FTSE 100's defensive nature and strong cash flow generation in a period where economic indicators are looking a bit weak and central banks still have pressures on them to hike because of an inflation," said Patrick Armstrong, chief investment officer at Plurimi Wealth.
Adding to the signs of economic recovery, the final reading of the S&P Global/CIPS UK Services Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) of 52.9 was below February's 53.5 but above the 50 mark, denoting growth for a second month in a row. Meanwhile on Wall Street, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq slipped as a growing pile of weak economic data stirred up fears that rapid interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve may tip the U.S. economy into a recession. AstraZeneca rose 3.1% after the drugmaker said a combination of its cancer drugs Imfinzi and Lynparza met the main goal in a late-stage trial. The domestically focussed FTSE 250 index fell 1.1%, with industrial firms and consumer discretionary stocks leading losses. Among other major movers, RS Group slid 6.3% after the distributor of industrial and electronics products posted slower fourth-quarter revenue momentum.
John Wood Group jumped 7.2% after private equity firm Apollo Management made what it said was a final offer to buy the oilfield services and engineering firm for 1.66 billion pounds ($2.1 billion) in cash.
Direct Line climbed 6.7% after Citigroup double upgraded the motor insurer's stock to "buy". (Reporting by Sruthi Shankar and Shristi Achar A in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Shailesh Kuber and Rashmi Aich)
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