Sector movers: Drug groups given a boost

28th Sep 2009 12:23

Drug group AstraZeneca is going well on news that it has won another round in its long-running fight against generic competition to bipolar treatment Seroquel. A US appeal court upheld its infringement claim against Sandoz and Teva Pharmaceutical over Seroquel tablets.The other big drug company, GlaxoSmithKline, has also been in the news lately. In the past 24 hours it has been reported that it has signed an agreement with a Chinese firm to launch the drink Lucozade across the far eastern country, sealed a deal with Brazil to market a vaccine to prevent pneumonia and meningitis and withdrawn its anti-vomiting drug Zunrisa. Its shares are also higher.Mining stocks fall back as metal prices continue receding following a recent rally. Large companies including Rio Tinto, Xstrata and Anglo American are in the red.Top performing sectors so far todayHousehold Goods 6,145.13 +1.68%Pharmaceuticals & Biotechnology 8,450.25 +1.50%Real Estate 2,035.95 +1.22%Tobacco 23,932.07 +1.22%Support Services 3,476.50 +1.06%Bottom performing sectors so far todayForestry & Paper 3,382.21 -2.21%Technology Hardware & Equipment 311.39 -1.61%Fixed Line Telecommunications 1,883.83 -1.27%Mining 17,243.46 -1.27%Media 3,130.32 -0.76%