K-STAR AND KANGER TRADING HIGH ON COVID-19 VACCINE NEWS

K-Star Sport Ltd is all geared up to distribute the COVID-19 vaccines and medical equipment products developed by China National Pharmaceutical Group Corp (Sinopharm) that will be available in the market soon.

Star Sport Ltd will start to distribute COVID-19 vaccines and medical equipment products developed by China National Pharmaceutical Group Corp. Pixabay/Photo

  The Main Market-listed company is the appointed sales agent by Kanger International Bhd for the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines and medical equipment products here.

 Kanger secured an agreement with Sinopharm Group Hunan Changde Medical Co Ltd in September to distribute the COVID-19 vaccines in Malaysia and has been looking for a well-established logistics and distribution provider.

  The ACE-market listed company entered into an MoU with K-Star last week to appoint the latter as the sales agent of the COVID-19 vaccines for private clinics in Malaysia.

  K-Star has expanded its activities into the healthcare sector and the sub-distribution sale and marketing of COVID-19 vaccines.

Kanger said the MoU will add value to the group as it is now focusing on the healthcare industry, such as to distribute COVID-19 vaccines.

  Shares of Kanger traded heavily today with 448 million shares traded by the day's closing.

  The stock rose to as high as 21 sen, before closing the day at 18.5 sen, with a market capitalisation of almost RM348 million.  

  K-Star also traded heavily with close to 42 million shares exchanging hands. The stock rose to as high as 98 sen today from yesterday's closing of 83.5 sen. It closed 92 sen today.

  There is news that the COVID-19 vaccines by Sinopharm, the largest and oldest biotech company in China, is close to being released on the market.

  Since June, Sinopharm's phase 3 clinical trial in dozens of countries and regions, including the UAE, Egypt, Bahrain, Peru and Morocco have had over 100,000 participants.

  According to Sinopharm's chairman Liu Jingzhen, some 100,000 people have been vaccinated with Sinopharm's vaccine and they showed no adverse reactions so far.

  Those who were inoculated with the COVID-19 vaccine totalling 56,000 people and travelled abroad had not been infected with the virus, he said in a conference last Friday.

  The fact that no one who received the vaccine has been infected, serves as more anecdotal evidence that the vaccine is working.

Liu had said previously that Sinopharm will produce about 100 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine by the end of the year, and estimates it will make 1 billion doses next year, to guarantee supplies especially for use by Chinese people.