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* FTSE 100 up 0.1%, FTSE 250 off 0.3%

July 28 (Reuters) - British equities edged higher on Friday as strong gains in the pharmaceutical sector, driven by upbeat quarterly results from AstraZeneca, offset concerns about the impact of higher interest rates on economic growth.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 added 0.1% by 0717 GMT, hovering around its highest level in nine weeks. Meanwhile, the midcap FTSE 250 index dipped 0.3% after rising for three consecutive sessions.

The biggest gainer on the FTSE was the pharmaceutical sector , which rose 1.9% after AstraZeneca beat expectations for its second-quarter profit. The stock climbed 3.0%.

Rate-sensitive real estate sector lost 0.9% as UK 10-year gilt yield rose to 4.392%, its highest since July 18 in early trade, after Bank of Japan tweaked its yield control policy during its monetary policy review.

Standard Chartered Plc rose 5.0% after the Asia-focussed lender upgraded its annual profit forecast and set a new $1 billion share buyback after a strong first-half performance.

British Airways operator IAG gained 2.0% as its quarterly profit beat analyst forecasts by 40% and it said it was encouraged by the outlook for the summer. (Reporting by Shubham Batra and Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun H K)