Vexing vaccine delays hit drug firms
AstraZeneca and Pfizer are being attacked by the EU over what it claims are delays in delivering the Covid vaccine.
Drug companies AstraZeneca and Pfizer are being attacked by the EU over vaccine delivery delays that could slow the EU’s recovery from Covid-19, says Julia Horowitz on CNN. Pfizer’s problems look likely to be resolved soon, however, while AstraZeneca says “considerably fewer” doses will be supplied for some time. With AstraZeneca’s jab due to be approved by Europe’s regulator shortly, “mounting” anger means that Brussels and several countries are “threatening to take legal action and introduce export controls on doses produced in the bloc” (see page 8).
AstaZeneca’s announcement will prolong the “misery and pain” of Covid-19, says Aimee Donnellan on Breakingviews. Still, problems were “inevitable” as the vaccine, developed by the University of Oxford, is made “through a complicated biological process, requiring constant fine-tuning and vast 4,000-litre fermenters, which are in short supply”.
AstraZeneca’s problems are good news for the jab produced by Janssen, Johnson & Johnson’s European vaccine division, which the EU has pre-ordered in large amounts, says the Irish Times. Like the AstraZeneca jab, it doesn’t require “ultra-cold storage temperatures”; but unlike all its major competitors, it also involves a single injection, “greatly simplifying... a national vaccine rollout”. With trial data expected in the next few days, the vaccine is set to receive approval from the US Food and Drug Administration sometime in February, with the nod from the European Medicines Agency expected not long afterwards.
Try 6 free issues of MoneyWeek today
Get unparalleled financial insight, analysis and expert opinion you can profit from.
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
-
Do you face ‘double whammy’ inheritance tax blow? How to lessen the impactFrozen tax thresholds and pensions falling within the scope of inheritance tax will drag thousands more estates into losing their residence nil-rate band, analysis suggests
-
Has the market misjudged Relx?Relx shares fell on fears that AI was about to eat its lunch, but the firm remains well placed to thrive
-
Has the market misjudged Relx?
Relx shares fell on fears that AI was about to eat its lunch, but the firm remains well placed to thrive
-
8 of the best properties for sale with minstrels’ galleriesThe best properties for sale with minstrels’ galleries – from a 15th-century house in Kent, to a four-storey house in Hampstead, comprising part of a converted, Grade II-listed former library
-
The rare books which are selling for thousandsRare books have been given a boost by the film Wuthering Heights. So how much are they really selling for?
-
How to invest as the shine wears off consumer brandsConsumer brands no longer impress with their labels. Customers just want what works at a bargain price. That’s a problem for the industry giants, says Jamie Ward
-
A niche way to diversify your exposure to the AI boomThe AI boom is still dominating markets, but specialist strategies can help diversify your risks
-
New PM Sanae Takaichi has a mandate and a plan to boost Japan's economyOpinion Markets applauded new prime minister Sanae Takaichi’s victory – and Japan's economy and stockmarket have further to climb, says Merryn Somerset Webb
-
Early signs of the AI apocalypse?Uncertainty is rife as investors question what the impact of AI will be.
-
8 of the best properties for sale with beautiful kitchensThe best properties for sale with beautiful kitchens – from a Modernist house moments from the River Thames in Chiswick, to a 19th-century Italian house in Florence
