(Reuters) - UK blue-chip shares slipped on Tuesday, as a second set of disappointing data from China this week cemented fears of a slowdown in global economic growth, while gains in the pound amid fading no-deal Brexit worries hit multinational stocks.
The FTSE 100 index <.FTSE> dipped 0.4%, having suffered its worst day this month in the last session, with equipment rental giant Ashtead <AHT.L> falling 3% after in-line results.
The more domestically-focussed index of midcaps <.FTMC> was flat by 0705 GMT, supported by a 22% jump in Galliford Try <GFRD.L> after the construction company said it had restarted preliminary talks to sell its residential units to housebuilder Bovis Homes <BVS.L>.
Sterling was seen close to a six-week high it hit on Monday after parliament passed a bill blocking a no-deal Brexit, weighing on British American Tobacco <BATS.L> and Diageo <DGE.L> as strength in the local currency meant the value of their U.S. earnings would be lower.
(Reporting by Muvija M in Bengaluru; Editing by Bernard Orr)
