Whether the dealmaking momentum of 2019 will continue into 2020 is at the mercy of several uncertainties, not the least of which is the outcome of a U.S. presidential election and continued debates over drug pricing and other legislative issues affecting the industry.

Therapeutic area data reported by biopharma companies on phase I trials in December 2019.

Delegates convening in San Francisco Monday for the 38th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference and other related biotechnology conferences running at the same time will certainly be in a better frame of mind than just 12 months ago. Back then, the sector had just come off a terrible fourth quarter, with investors shying away from biopharma company equities big time.