After the company won a key U.S. ruling over its cholesterol drug Crestor, shares in Anglo-Swedish pharmaceuticals giant AstraZeneca soared by more than 10% on June 30.
The company's share price surged 10.49% to 3,256.01 pence in morning deals on the London stock market, which was showing a gain of 0.44%.
A court has ruled that AstraZeneca's patent on Crestor was "valid and enforceable", ending a three-year battle with nine generic drugs manufacturers, the group said.
Crestor generated $2.1 billion of sales in the United States last year and is a key product for AstraZeneca.
"The court's decision reaffirms the strength of the intellectual property protecting Crestor," said Chief executive David Brennan.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2010
