KUALA LUMPUR (July 15): Pharmaniaga Bhd was one of the top two gainers on Bursa Malaysia this morning, with its stock up by 46 sen or 20.4%. 

At the time of writing, it was trading at RM2.71 with 4.49 million changing hands.

Meanwhile, Duopharma Biotech Bhd was up 20 sen or 12.2% to RM1.83 with 11.3 million shares traded this morning. 

Both shares were in active trade today after the Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said that Duopharma and Pharmaniaga will be undertaking the fill and finish processes for the Covid-19 vaccine, once a vaccine is developed.

He told reporters at Parliament yesterday that Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has agreed for the facilities of the two companies to be utilised for that purpose, noting that the main challenge for the production of the vaccine is the finishing process.

"We will be purchasing the vaccine overseas, either from China, the US or the UK, in bulk, and we will be doing the bottling process here," he said. 

Asked on the cost of investment needed to prepare and operate the fill and finish facilities, initial discussions with Pharmaniaga and Duopharma showed that there will be "minimal investment" needed, the minister noted.

On Tuesday (July 14), US biotech firm Moderna said that it would enter the final stage of its human trials for its Covid-19 vaccine on July 27, after promising early results were published in a journal.

Bloomberg noted that Asian stocks and US equity futures climbed Wednesday amid optimism that progress is being made in developing a defense against the coronavirus.

The FBM KLCI edged up in early trade Wednesday morning in line with the regional stocks and US equity futures that climbed higher on this optimism.

At 9.05am, the bellwether index added 0.88 points to 1,599.63; however, the local bourse has since declined to 1,596.35.