Vaccine 'hope' plays on US stocksOptimism that vaccines are on the way to end the coronavirus pandemic has been a major factor in this year's US stock resurgence. Global efforts to develop a vaccine are coming to a head, with late-stage data on trials by companies such as Pfizer Inc and Moderna Inc possible as soon as October or November. That could explain why stocks overall barely reacted earlier this month, when AstraZeneca Plc and partner Oxford University paused global trials of one of the leading vaccine candidates after a participant in its UK trial became seriously ill. Even if a vaccine is approved, questions persist about how easily and quickly it can be distributed. While the market could handle one vaccine setback "reasonably well", several setbacks could cause a rethink of the vaccine race, he said.

Source: Bangkok Post September 24, 2020 10:52 UTC