We’d like to thank US President Donald Trump, his Health Secretary Robert Kennedy and ‘the Masters of the Universe’ for dragging the adjusted Biotech Daily Top 40 Index (BDI-40) to its lowest point since August 31, 2024 and the four Big Caps to their collective lowest market capitalization since October 31, 2019 – five and half years ago.

Take a bow, anti-vaccination dis-information, global political turmoil, and the consequent economic and market chaos. In the 13 months since Mr Trump was inaugurated, the four Big Caps have lost $94,016 million or 38.6 percent, while the BDI-40 has lost $6,861 million or 26.7 percent. It is very hard to think this correlation is not causality.

The February Biotech Daily Top 40 Index (BDI-40) fell a further 3.6 percent to a collective market capitalization of $18,865 million, while the benchmark ASX200 climbed 3.7 percent to 9,199 points and the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index climbed 3.2 percent to 6,041 points.

The collective value of the four Big Caps of Cochlear, CSL, Pro Medicus and Resmed (which are not included in the BDI-40) lost 15.9 percent in February to $149,715 million, led by CSL losing $16,194 million or 18.6 percent to $70,842 million - its lowest market capitalization since the end of March 2018.

CSL didn’t name Trump and Kennedy as factors in its demise, but did refer to its US influenza vaccine demand falling five to six percent and the Seqirus business division operating earnings falling seven percent, despite “real world evidence” of the efficacy of its Flucelvax and Fluad vaccines. Other companies tell similar “real world evidence” stories.

The Big Caps deepest percentage fall was Pro Medicus losing $5,650 million or 29.8 percent to $13,300 million, followed by Cochlear down 24.7 percent to $12,993 million, with Resmed down just 3.9 percent to $52,550 million.

The 40 companies in the BDI-40 were volatile. Eleven were up, with six up by more than 10 percent and three by more than 20 percent. Twenty-nine fell, with 13 down by more than 10 percent and five by more than 20 percent.

The $486 million improvement by 4D Medical didn’t offset the falls by Mesoblast, Neuren and Telix. From a lower base, Lumos was the best, up $48 million or 28.2 percent to $218 million, followed by 4D Medical (27.0%), Starpharma (20.6%), Avita (16.0%), Cynata (14.5%) and Clarity (12.5%).

Botanix led the falls, down $93 million or 42.9 percent to $124 million, followed by Proteomics (28.2%), Impedimed (25.5%), Cyclopharm (21.5%), Neuren (20.2%), Nova Eye (18.9%), Compumedics (16.5%), Nanosonics (16.4%), Curvebeam (15.8%), Micro-X (15.6%), Imugene (14.4%), Paradigm (13.6%) and Optiscan (10.1%).

Outside the BDI-40, Anteris, Artrya, Bioxyne, Blinklab, Cogstate and Echo IQ continued to shine, as did Pacific Edge and Racura (Race), with Perth’s PYC passing through the $1 billion market capitalization marker on internal ructions, phase I trials and capital raisings.

Cannabis Corner climbed $21 million or 6.8 percent in February to $328 million - up 33.7 percent for the year to February 28, 2026. Bioxyne climbed 54.0 percent, Inhalerx was up 16.7 percent, three companies were unchanged and six fell.