Health stocks jump as WHO declares mpox global health emergency
LONDON — Shares of Danish vaccine maker Bavarian Nordic jumped as much as 17% Thursday amid a wider rally for associated healthcare stocks after the World Health Organization declared an escalating mpox outbreak in Africa as a public health emergency.
Bavarian Nordic, one of the only companies with an approved mpox vaccine, was 16.5% higher in early deals in Copenhagen, Denmark, extending 13% gains from the previous session when it said it said it could meet growing shot demand.
The stock pared gains to trade up around 8% by around 4:36 p.m. local time.
Shares of U.S. pharmaceutical company Emergent Biosolutions — whose ACAM2000 vaccine is one of two recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) alongside Bavarian Nordic's JYNNEOS — climbed in after hours trade in New York.
Meanwhile, medical tools supplier Precision System Science Co soared 40% in Tokyo.
The WHO declaration on Wednesday — its second in two years for mpox — follows an outbreak of the viral infection in Democratic Republic of Congo that has spread to neighbouring countries.
The "public health emergency of international concern" status is the WHO's highest designation and aims to accelerate international public health measures and cooperation to contain a disease.
Mpox is a zoonotic disease that spreads from animals to humans,with flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions on the body. Usually mild, it can be fatal in rare cases.
The surge in cases is thought to derive from a new variant, known as clade Ib, which appears to spread more easily through close contact, including sexual contact. Cases of the new variant have since been confirmed in Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda.
It comes after a prior outbreak of the virus in 2022, when thousands