FTSE 100 trims gains; AstraZeneca PLC closes the week with impressive run

• FTSE 100 closes around eight points higher
• top blue-chip riser
• US benchmarks seeing red

5.05pm: FTSE closes ahead

FTSE 100 closed on the front foot at the end of the trading week, with drugs giant and much-in-the-news COVID-19 vaccine producer () the top dog.

Footsie finished ahead by around eight points, or 0.12%, at 6,969, with the psychologically significant 7,000 level now coming back into view.

Over the week as a whole , the FTSE 100 added around 0.45%.

shares closed up over 4% at 7,715p as traders welcomed an upbeat first quarterly results statement, which showed sales of US$7.3 billion, around 15% higher compared to the first quarter of 2020.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed around 211 points at 33,848; the S&P 500 lost 25 points at 5,186 and the Nasdaq shed 62 points to 14,019.

3.40pm:  closes the week with impressive run

FTSE 100 trimmed its gains before close, rising 28 points to 6,999.

AstraZeneca PLC () extended its gains and was up 5% to 7,760p in the afternoon after a 3% jump in the morning.

It is quite the leap for such a massive company, worth £101.7bn based on Thursday’s closing price of 7,398p.

Albeit suffering from reputation issues in the EU due to issues with the COVID-19 vaccine supply, the stock is well liked by investors for its pipeline beyond the jab and other coronavirus treatment.

In fact, the pharma giant reckons trading will be even better as infections drop in its markets, so restrictions will no longer hinder performance.

Full-year revenue is forecast to jump 11-12%, which doesn’t include any revenue or profit impact from sales of the COVID-19 vaccine, nor the proposed acquisition of rare disease firm Alexion, which will close in the third quarter.

The Anglo-Swedish group also released quarterly results that beat expectations, with revenue climbing 15% to US$7.3bn in the quarter ended 31 March.

2.45pm: Proactive North America headlines:

Numinus Wellness Inc () () () ends 2Q with C$28.5M after closing Mindspace Wellbeing acquisition

() (FRA:ZGV3) officially breaks ground on its renewable natural gas project in northwest Iowa

Naturally Splendid Enterprises Ltd () (OTCPINK:NSPDF) (FRA:50N) appoints CANEX Foods as master distributor for NATERA Plant Based Foods in Canada

KushCo Holdings Inc () reveals the future leadership team following its merger with Greenlane Holdings

() () (FRA:SL4A) to undergo 10:1 reverse stock split in effort to earn Nasdaq listing

() (OTCMKTS:LSANF) (FRA:L41A) receives environmental approval for drilling, allowing it to complete PFS at Chile copper project

Inc () () (FRA:7CR) goes live in South Africa’s $2.9B gaming market with Intelligent Gaming

() () (FRA:20Q) extends Tiria-Shimpia target in Ecuador to 22km after discovering Shimpia North

Empress Royalty Corp ( ) () (FRA:53G) funds silver stream agreement on Tahuehueto project in Mexico

Marble Financial Inc (CSE MRBL) () (FRA:2V0) partners with 55Rush and its 1.1M Parent Life Network to build audience for financial literacy tools

2.38pm: Wall Street opens in the red

Markets on Wall Street have opened lower on Friday morning as traders stood back and took a breather after Thursday’s blockbuster session.

Shortly after the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.45% at 33,907 while the S&P 500 dropped 0.55% to 4,188 and the Nasdaq fell 0.6% to 13,997.

While the wider market was negative, shares in Amazon jumped 1.3% to US$3,515 in early deals following the ecommerce giant’s strong quarterly numbers overnight.

Back in London, the FTSE 100 was heading in the opposite direction to Wall Street, rising 37 points to 6,998 at around 2.40pm.

2pm: Apple breaks competition rules, says EU Commission

FTSE 100 swung back in the green in the early afternoon, up 26 points to 6,987.

Apple Inc () was found in breach of competition rules, the EU said.

Our preliminary conclusion: @Apple is in breach of EU competition law.