After yesterday's dramatic drop on the FTSE 100 index, stocks are making little headway this morning but are led by improved profits for ICI.
The FTSE 100 index has so far gained just 9.5 points or 0.2% to 6019.5 in early trading as more share values are falling than rising this morning. Imperial Chemical Industries is keeping the blue chips index afloat and has gained 5.1% to 289p after posting a first-quarter profit of £65m – above analysts expectations. Dragging the index down, however, is AstraZeneca, the UK's second-largest pharmaceutical firm, as it has lost 1.6% to £29.28. The company has announced it will stop development of a new diabetes treatment after studies revealed it is unlikely to offer “significant advantage''...
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