AstraZeneca Stumbles as FTSE 100 Dips on Geopolitical Jitters

The downward momentum for the index was largely dictated by AstraZeneca, which weighed heavily on the benchmark following underwhelming data from a late-stage clinical trial. While the blue-chip index struggled to find footing, the midcap FTSE 250 managed a marginal gain of 0.1 percent, suggesting a divergence in sentiment between top-tier multinationals and smaller domestic firms as the trading day progressed.