Moderna, BioNtech surge as COVID-19 vaccine development progresses amid virus spike | Markets - Business Insider

A photo illustration show a syringe. Argentina was selected to test a vaccine against COVID-19, it is estimated that the clinical phases will begin in August.

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• Moderna and BioNtech surged in Thursday trades amid updates on the development of a COVID-19 vaccine.
• Investor focus on a potential vaccine is heightened as daily COVID-19 cases spike across the US and in Europe.
• Moderna said it's "actively preparing for the launch" of its COVID-19 vaccine, while a report from the Wall Street Journal said Germany could begin vaccinations this year with a BioNtech vaccine.
• Visit the Business Insider homepage for more stories.

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Moderna and BioNtech surged in Thursday trades as investor focus on a successful COVID-19 vaccine remained heightened amid a surge in daily virus cases.

Moderna traded higher by as much as 13%, while BioNtech jumped as much as 11%.

In its third quarter earnings report, Moderna said it's "actively preparing for the launch" of its COVID-19 vaccine.

Moderna's phase III trial of the vaccine candidate is fully enrolled with 30,000 patients.

To date, Moderna has received more than $1 billion in deposits from governments around the world who are eager to distribute a successful COVID-19 vaccine.

The most recent deal struck by Moderna was with Takeda of Japan, announced earlier today. Moderna will supply Takeda with 50 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine in the first half of 2021 pending approval in Japan.

Depending on the results of a clinical trial, BioNtech's COVID-19 vaccine could be rapidly distributed across Germany by the end of this year, The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.

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According to people familiar with the strategy, a plan is in place for doses of the BioNtech vaccine to be shipped to more than 60 regional vaccine centers in Germany within hours of approval.

Initial recipients of a successful COVID vaccine in Germany would include health-care workers, the elderly, and clinically vulnerable people, among others. 

BioNtech has partnered with Pfizer on the development of a COVID-19 vaccine and it hopes to submit its vaccine for authorization in November. 

BioNtech and Pfizer have already produced millions of doses of its vaccine so it can deliver on pre-purchasing contracts, according to The Wall Street Journal.

A vaccine couldn't come soon enough. The US has experienced record daily virus cases this past weekend, and new lockdown measures have hit Germany and France as they attempt to contain a resurgence of the virus. 

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Moderna, BioNtech surge as COVID-19 vaccine development progresses amid virus spike | Markets - Business Insider
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