The race to find a vaccine against the coronavirus isn't just going to be life-saving - it's also going to be lucrative. That's why millions of people across the world are paying very close attention to the way in which scientists are reacting to the current crisis.
The coronavirus has caused a great deal of volatility but seasoned traders (the sort with these books on their reading list) have long-since learned that out of volatility comes opportunity - just in the same way that turmoil necessitates innovation from scientists and inventors.
Moderna benefits from leading the vaccine race
Investors are already showing that they're willing to latch onto positive signs and put their money behind the businesses showing themselves most likely to be leading the charge with a coronavirus vaccine.
That spelled good news for Massachusetts-based Moderna, for example. Following news that it would be the first firm to conduct human trials on a vaccine - which broke on March 16 - its share price shot up. Having sat sub-$20 in February, shares topped $50 and held around that level at the end of April. There have been signs that this initial growth went too far - and we can expect the price to level out a little in the coming days and weeks - but it's a useful sign of the way in which investors are thinking.
Moderna is far from the only competitor in the 'race' too - with about 80 active projects under way. If any of these could spark an early breakthrough, they'd clearly be a global demand.
Gilead and its billion dollar drug
Yet investors aren't just focussed on a vaccine. The recent rise in the share price for Gilead shows there are further opportunities for growth among companies at the coronavirus cutting edge. Its share price shot up by more than 16% in a single day amid suggestions that its drug remdesivir was proving effective in treating hospitalized patients suffering from severe COVID-19 symptoms.
With positive noises about a swift green light from the drugs authorities, there's every chance that remdesivir could quickly become a $1billion-a-year drug.
Note of caution
Just as lofty predictions for any drug or vaccine should come with an appropriate health warning at this stage though - so too should any certainty over stock market success.
As investing website Motley Fool notes, every meteoric rise could so easily be followed by a dramatic fall. In the grip of the coronavirus, biotech stocks could be even more volatile than the forex market - and delays, lack of approvals and failed trials could all spark a reversal of fortunes.
The site warned: "We don't have a great track record when it comes to developing vaccines against coronavirus infections in humans. That doesn't mean this herculean effort is destined to fail, but it does make it impossible to handicap which company has the best chance of crossing the finish line. In other words, investors should probably take a cautious approach with this highly unpredictable field right now. All of these speculative biotech stocks could quickly reverse course and give up all of these recent gains."
All eyes are certainly on the science community at the moment. A lot of money rests on what happens next in the race to treat and protect millions of people across the globe.
