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FTSE 100 tracks Asia gains on COVID-19 treatment hopes

Published 24/08/2020, 08:12
© Reuters.
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* FTSE 100 up 1.2%, FTSE 250 adds 0.5%

Aug 24 (Reuters) - The FTSE 100 jumped on Monday, tracking
Asian markets as U.S. regulators authorised a COVID-19 treatment
over the weekend, while AstraZeneca rose on a report the U.S.
government was considering fast-tracking its experimental
vaccine.
The drugmaker AZN.L gained 1.5% and was the top boost to
the FTSE 100 as the report said one option being explored would
involve the U.S. health regulator awarding "emergency use
authorisation" in October to the potential vaccine. The export-laden FTSE 100 .FTSE was up 1.2% after ending
Friday with its first weekly loss in three as fresh Brexit
concerns compounded fears over the UK's post-pandemic economic
recovery.
The blue-chip index has gained about 23% from its March
lows, but lagged the U.S. benchmark S&P 500 .SPX , which is
scaling record highs on historic fiscal and monetary stimulus
and hopes that the worst of the pandemic's economic damage was
over.
On Sunday, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration said it
authorised the use of blood plasma from patients who had
recovered from COVID-19 as a treatment for the disease.
The UK's mid-cap FTSE 250 .FTMC rose 0.5%, led by
financial, industrial and consumer discretionary stocks.

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