FTSE 100 Slips as Pharma Stocks Weigh

(Reuters) -The main UK stock indexes slipped on Friday, with losses in AstraZeneca and GSK weighing on the blue-chip FTSE 100, while data showed Britain’s economy contracted unexpectedly in September.

Shares of drugmakers AstraZeneca dropped 3.1% and GSK dipped 3.9%, tracking losses in U.S. and European vaccine makers after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said he had selected Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has previously spread misinformation on vaccines, to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.

The FTSE 100 closed down 0.1% and clocked its fourth consecutive week of declines.

The midcap FTSE 250 index dipped 0.2%.

Britain’s economy contracted unexpectedly in September and growth slowed to a crawl over the third quarter, data showed, an early setback for finance minister Rachel Reeves’ ambitions to kick-start a sustained pickup.

GDP slipped by 0.1% in monthly terms during September, while economists had forecast an expansion of 0.2%.

The latest UK GDP figures offered evidence of the chilling effect of a Budget build-up filled with warnings about hard decisions,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.

On Thursday, Reeves promised a reboot of regulation governing Britain’s “crown jewel” financial industry, which she said had stifled economic growth.

Land Securities climbed 4.3% after the commercial property firm forecast annual earnings above market expectations.

TT Electronics soared 40% after Volex Plc said the British electronic components maker had declined to engage with it and rejected two takeover offers it had submitted.

Volex, the maker of power products and data connectivity cable, fell about 11%.

(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid, Editing by William Maclean)