Despite heavy selling in tech stocks and metals, the FTSE 100 opened largely unchanged, while the FTSE 250 slipped slightly by late morning.
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AstraZeneca rose 0.1% after partnering with China’s CSPC Pharmaceuticals to develop once-monthly injectable weight-management treatments. The deal gives AZ exclusive rights outside China, with $1.2 billion upfront and potential regulatory payments up to $3.5 billion.
London Stock Exchange Group gained 0.6% after agreeing a MoU with China’s ICBC on global markets, data, cross-border RMB business, and sustainable finance during the UK prime minister’s Beijing visit.
Airtel Africa slipped 3.5% despite strong nine-month results, reporting revenue up 28% to $4.67 billion. Operating profit rose to $1.53 billion and pretax profit more than doubled to $1.02 billion, driven by customer growth, higher data usage, and momentum in Airtel Money.
Saga led the FTSE 250 gainers, up 3.5%, after Deutsche Bank raised its price target to 600 pence and reiterated a buy rating.
Man Group followed, rising 2.7%, also after a target upgrade. Smaller cap Peel Hunt climbed 6.3% following strong second-half performance across its investment banking and execution services.
US tech stocks struggled after Microsoft’s earnings disappointment saw its share price fall 10%. Wall Street ended mixed, with the Dow up 0.1%, the S&P 500 down 0.1% and the Nasdaq down 0.7%, while futures suggest further volatility.
In other news, US President Donald Trump criticised UK-China trade during Prime Minister Starmer’s visit to Beijing.
Trump said UK-China trade was “dangerous” and warned Canada against similar deals, threatening 100% tariffs on Canadian exports if it pursued a free trade agreement with China. Starmer concluded his trip as UK firms announced partnerships with Chinese companies.