Sparks of growth for AstraZeneca hide cancer trial fail

AstraZeneca's promised return to growth has begun slowly; Group sales of $5.16 billion came in ahead of expectations, but were still down about 1% year-over-year on a constant exchange rate basis. The beat was driven by 69% growth in new products like Lynparza, Tagrisso and Imfinzi during the first half, as well as a boost in sales in China.