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10-Year BDI-40 Up 80%, ASX200 Down 9% Big Caps Up 270%

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Trump Effect: March BDI-40 Down 2%,
ASX200 Down 3%, Big Caps Down 3%

 Bionomics Up 30%, Cyclopharm 23%; Prana Down 17%, Mesoblast 16%

 

Apr 3, 2018

US President Donald Trump’s initiation of trade wars appears to have spooked the global markets in March, with the BDI-40 among many indices down for the month.

 

The Biotech Daily Top 40 Index (BDI-40) 2.4 percent retreat was smaller than the ASX200 4.3 percent fall, with the three Big Caps of Cochlear, CSL and Resmed down 3.4 percent and the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index (NBI) down 1.4 percent (see charts below).

 

The collective market capitalization of the three Big Caps of Cochlear, CSL and Resmed (which are not included in the BDI-40) fell to $98,443 million, with CSL down 4.7 percent to $70,330 million, Cochlear down 1.2 percent to $10,452 million, but Resmed defied gravity edging up 0.5 percent to $17,661 million.

 

Sixteen of the BDI-40 companies were up, 23 fell and one was unchanged.

 

The BDI-20 slipped 1.8 percent on mainly small falls and small gains, except for Bionomics leading the pack on no news in March, while the Second 20 shed 5.9 percent.

 

Bionomics was the best, up 30.4 percent to $270 million, followed by Cyclopharm up 22.7 percent to $81 million, Admedus (21.5%), Immutep (16.4%), Psivida (14.1%) and Clinuvel (13.6%).

 

Prana led the falls, down 17.2 percent to $24 million, followed by Mesoblast (16.3%), Uscom (15.8%), Neuren (14.5%), Airxpanders (13.5%), Optiscan (13.5%), Starpharma (13.5%), LBT (10.3%) and Opthea (10.2%).

 

Outside the BDI-40, Invion leapt 326.1 percent from a very low base to a market capitalization of $196 million on completing the acquisition of a new technology, a capital raising and a new major shareholder.

 

Adherium was up 93.3 percent to $29 million – or where it was 12 months ago – Nuheara improved 66 percent to $83 million and Immuron was up 54.3 percent to $54 million.

 

Two companies associated with Viralytics chairman Paul Hopper, Prescient and Imugene, were up 46.7 percent and 36.2 percent, respectively, possibly because of the association following the February sale of Viralytics to Merck for $502 million.

 

The 15 companies in Cannabis Corner have become 16 companies, with the likely emergence of 1-Page as a marijuana player, but the group fell a collective 4.1 percent to $1,481 million.

 

In the US, Queensland’s Protagonist fell 47.2 percent on a phase IIb drug trial fail, having retreated 23.1 percent in February from January’s record high of $581 million, with Israel’s Redhill down 19.2 percent.

 

Vaxart, which is half Aviragen (formerly Melbourne’s Biota) was up 96.0 percent to $49 million, making a 2012 Biota $1.00 share worth about 3.9 cents today.

 

 

 

BDI-40 v S&P ASX200 Jun 30, 2006 to Mar 31, 2018 

 

BDI-40 v S&P ASX200 Mar 31, 2017 to Mar 31, 2018 

 

 

Big Caps (Cochlear, CSL, Resmed) Year To Mar 31, 2018