The Philippines reported its first case of monkeypox this year, with related concept stocks surging in pre-market trading on the US stock market

The monkeypox epidemic is "raging", and related concept stocks have been soaring for several days in a row.

On the evening of Monday, August 19th, the Philippine Department of Health announced the country's first case of monkeypox after the World Health Organization declared the monkeypox epidemic a global public health emergency.

The latest news also shows that the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) has raised the risk level of sporadic cases of monkeypox in the EU from "low" to "medium" after the EU overall monkeypox infection risk was raised from "very low" to "low".

Today, monkeypox concept stocks in the US stock market continued to soar before the market opened. As of the time of writing, Emergent Biosolutions and Chimerix rose nearly 8%, while GeoVax Labs surged over 50%.

WHO sounds the alarm on monkeypox, global spread risk

The number of monkeypox cases is increasing globally, with Sweden, Pakistan, and other places reporting new imported cases of monkeypox.

Last Wednesday, the World Health Organization declared the monkeypox epidemic a "public health emergency of international concern". This is the second time since July 2022 that the WHO has issued the highest level of warning under the International Health Regulations for the monkeypox epidemic.

It is reported that this round of the monkeypox epidemic is different from previous ones, with the main strain gradually shifting from "Clade II" to "Clade I" and its variant "Clade Ib". This variant has not only caused small-scale transmission in Central Africa but also demonstrated the ability to efficiently spread among populations through various means such as sexual contact.

The ECDC previously stated that the strain causing the current outbreak in Africa is different from the 2022 strain, which is currently spreading at a low level in Europe and globally. It is expected that more imported cases of monkeypox will appear in Europe in the coming weeks.

Concept stocks surge, African monkeypox vaccine in short supply

Currently, the only vaccine approved globally for preventing and controlling monkeypox virus is the MVA-BN vaccine produced by the Danish pharmaceutical company Bavarian Nordic A/S. In addition, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also recommends the use of Emergent Biosolutions' ACAM2000 vaccine to prevent monkeypox.

Shares of Bavarian Nordic in Europe fell by over 4% today, ending a nine-day uptrend and accumulating a rise of about 40% in the past five trading days.

In the past 5 trading days, the stock price of Emergent BioSolutions has risen by over 55%, skyrocketing over 600% in the past six months.

However, the high cost of the monkeypox vaccine may be difficult for many impoverished countries to afford, posing a significant obstacle to vaccine promotion efforts in the African region.

Jean Kaseya, head of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stated:

"Many countries cannot afford the current two-dose monkeypox vaccine, priced at $200 in total ( $100 per dose)."

According to estimates by organizations, if the monkeypox vaccine is widely promoted, the African continent will need to spend $4 billion.

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) stated that countries with vaccine stocks but no outbreaks "must donate vaccines to affected African countries as much as possible." The organization also urged Bavarian Nordic to lower the price of its vaccine, stating that the MVA-BN vaccine is priced too high for most countries threatened by monkeypox.

Quoting Brownwyn Nicol, Senior Public Health Emergency Officer at the International Red Cross, most vaccine stocks are concentrated in wealthy countries, and the number of vaccines sent to Africa so far has been "a drop in the ocean."

Nicol said:

"The entire African continent is severely lacking in testing, treatment, and vaccines. These shortages severely hinder the ability to combat the epidemic."