LONDON, April 9 (Xinhua) -- The FTSE 100 tumbled 2.92 percent on Wednesday, shedding 231.05 points to close at 7,679.48 points as U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping tariff plan officially came into effect, sending shockwaves through global financial markets.

The blue-chip index opened lower and extended losses throughout the morning, hitting an intraday low of 7,603.02 around midday. The decline narrowed slightly in the afternoon session.

"The feared escalation of the trade war is playing out and it's sent another jolt of deep pessimism through markets," said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.

Shares of Britain's two leading pharmaceutical companies, AstraZeneca and GSK, were among Wednesday's top fallers on the London market, following Trump's fresh remarks of imposing "major tariffs" on the pharmaceutical industry.

AstraZeneca shares fell 6.82 percent while GSK dropped 5.71 percent on Wednesday. Shares in Hikma Pharmaceuticals, a British-based generics producer, also slipped 3.64 percent.

Speaking at a Capitol Hill dinner on Tuesday evening, Trump said pharmaceutical companies would be forced to return production to the United States once tariffs were introduced. "We're going to tariff our pharmaceuticals... they're going to come rushing back into our country," he said. Enditem

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