Sector movers: Defensive pharma stocks fall as Santa Rally continues

23rd Dec 2014 16:18

Pharmaceutical and healthcare stocks were leading the fallers on Tuesday as investors dumped defensive assets amid a continued pre-Christmas rally.UK stocks have risen for six straight days as markets rebounded strongly following a recent sell-off.While more cyclical sectors such as construction and mining have performed well, shares in the defensive categories have taken the brunt of investors taking on more risk.Medical-device maker Smith & Nephew was among the worst performers on the FTSE 100 in afternoon trade, followed closely behind by pharma giants Astrazeneca and Shire.Glaxosmithkline and Hikma Pharmaceuticals were also trading in the red. Top performing sectors so far todayIndustrial Metals & Mining 1,475.34 +4.98%Oil Equipment, Services & Distribution 17,010.02 +2.54%Construction & Materials 4,128.05 +2.35%Industrial Engineering 8,991.97 +1.99%Food & Drug Retailers 2,778.65 +1.92%Bottom performing sectors so far todayPharmaceuticals & Biotechnology 12,688.15 -1.63%Health Care Equipment & Services 6,276.94 -1.58%Tobacco 40,887.31 -0.44%Food Producers & Processors 8,253.65 -0.14%Software & Computer Services 1,240.78 -0.14%