The approval of Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A.'s and Orexigen Therapeutics Inc.'s Contrave (naltrexone and bupropion) in September and Saxenda (liraglutide) from Novo Nordisk A/S last month doubled the number of obesity drugs approved by the FDA in the last two and a half years. Read More
It was a volatile month for the capital markets at just one trading day left before the curtain closed on the first month of the year. The markets experienced wild swings throughout January. Despite the uncertainties, the industry has got off to a red hot start to the year with the BioWorld Biotech Blue Chip index, a price-weighted index that includes 20 of the top biotech companies by market cap, recording a strong 6.5 percent jump in value compared to the lackluster 1.1 percent drop in the Nasdaq composite Index and a 2.3 percent slide in the Dow Jones Industrial average over the same period. Read More
