Shares of UK pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca continue on a downward trend for a third day straight amid the vanishing confidence in the efficacy of its coronavirus vaccine, developed jointly with the University of Oxford
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th November, 2020) Shares of UK pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca continue on a downward trend for a third day straight amid the vanishing confidence in the efficacy of its coronavirus vaccine, developed jointly with the University of Oxford.
On Monday, AstraZeneca announced that phase 3 clinical trials of its vaccine established the average efficacy at 70 percent, which is significantly lower than its main competitors. The company reported two separate efficacy results 62 percent and 90 percent depending on the dose.
AstraZeneca shares on the London Stock Exchange have lost over 4 percent of value since then, trading 78.36 British Pounds ($104.8) as of 15:40 GMT on Wednesday.
Earlier in the day, US Operation Warp Speed Chief Advisor Moncef Slaoui said that the dosing regimen of AstraZeneca's vaccine that showed higher efficacy had only been tested on people younger than 55 years old, as quoted by Bloomberg. Operation Warp Speed is the United States' facility tasked with facilitating and accelerating the development and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics.
Phase 3 clinical trials of the AstraZeneca vaccine are carried out in the United Kingdom, Brazil and India. The trials were put on hold twice after participants developed side effects, including inflammation of the spinal cord and sclerosis. In October, a volunteer participant in Brazil died after being inoculated with the vaccine, which, nevertheless, did not result in the suspension of trials.
