The opportunities are gigantic, as are the forecasts of experts. The consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, for example, sees hydrogen as a key element of the energy transition and expects an increase from 76 to up to 600 Mt worldwide by 2050. Despite the rosy outlook, buoyed by huge subsidy programs from politicians, companies in the sector are undergoing a sharp consolidation phase. For example, industry leaders such as Plug Power and Nel ASA have recently lost over 40% of their stock market valuation. For a long time, newcomer First Hydrogen was able to escape the correction. After outperforming and gaining over 1,600% since August 2021, the share price halved quickly and is now trading at a prominent support zone. The fundamental data remain excellent so that a second long-term entry opportunity could arise at the current level.
Sentiment toward Germany as a business location has deteriorated significantly among major industrial companies in recent months. The sharp increase in energy and material costs, followed by high wage settlements, are putting pressure on operating margins. BASF is one of the most energy-intensive conglomerates in the country. Management is reluctantly responding with cost-cutting measures that call entire locations into question and mean a significant reduction in the number of employees. It is not only the worsening economic situation that is responsible but, above all, the anti-industry policies from Berlin and Brussels. Managers are therefore turning their attention to much cheaper foreign markets and investing many billions there. Here is an update from yesterday's Annual General Meeting.
The use of artificial intelligence is here to stay. According to industry experts, we are at the beginning of a technological revolution that, based on information and communication technology and driven by AI, will lead us to a world where all things will be connected and intelligent. The market growth is enormous and will be accelerated by future key technologies such as 5G, cloud, video, the Internet of Things and autonomous driving. C3.ai is a leading provider of AI software for enterprises to accelerate digital transformation. Despite the outstanding growth opportunities, the still loss-making US company, valued at USD 1.98 billion, is facing headwinds from several sides.
The Canadian-German biotech company BioNxt has won an international pharmaceutical company as a customer and concluded a development and manufacturing contract. An orally soluble product based on BioNxt's platform will be developed and manufactured at the site of its German subsidiary Vektor Pharma TF GmbH in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. According to a company release, the contract has been signed and partially paid. About a week ago, BioNxt reported the purchase of a coating and cutting machine to expand commercial manufacturing capacity. Now, things could also move very quickly with another product from BioNxt.
Due to the war in Ukraine and the end of the loose monetary policy by the central banks, the stock exchanges took a dive, especially in the first nine months of last year. The leading German index DAX lost around 28% from the beginning of the Russian invasion until the beginning of October. The uncertainties also caused the trading figures of online brokers to plummet. However, a strong recovery began in the 4th quarter of 2022. Since then, the DAX has posted a performance of almost 36%. While the war in Eastern Europe continues to rage, an end to the cycle of interest rate hikes seems within reach. Due to the resurgent world stock markets, online brokers are also likely to experience a significant rebound. Above all, Smartbroker Holding AG should benefit disproportionately from the launch of "Smartbroker 2.0".
Biotech stocks have not yet been able to mirror the major stock market upswing since October 2022. The reason for this is the parallel rise in interest rates, which makes the refinancing of growth companies extremely expensive. MorphoSys acquired the US biotech company Constellation Pharmaceutical for USD 1.7 billion in 2021. Since this huge step, the share has lost 25% of its value. Now, however, the situation seems to be under control. A look ahead to 2023/2024 gives hope, and the share price may have recently reached a technical bottom. We analyze the current development.
In April, Bill Anderson of the United States took up his position on the Board of Management of Bayer AG. On June 1, 2023, he will be appointed CEO, succeeding Werner Baumann, who resigned one year earlier than the end of his contract due to pressure from dissatisfied investors. Anderson has enormous room for change, according to internal sources. It remains to be seen whether a breakup of the life science company would be a consequence of his appointment. Internally, such a move would lead to strong unrest and unsettle employees more than winning their trust in him as the new leader. The trained chemist is being diplomatic: He will spend the next two months "listening" and so far sees no consensus on the issue. Reporters learned this at Bayer's headquarters in Leverkusen, where Anderson gave a speech outlining his vision for the Company. He emphasized that he wants to focus on results and progress in science.
Curing cancer is a dream of humanity. However, when looking at mRNA projects from large companies such as BioNTech or Moderna, a higher survival rate is still considered a success. Moderna, together with the US pharmaceutical company Merck, Sharpe & Dohme (MSD), has now shown that an mRNA vaccine can reduce the mortality of seriously ill skin cancer patients by 40%. This article looks at how Moderna's project relates to Defence Therapeutics, where it connects to BioNTech's projects, and why adjuvant technology is critical in mRNA vaccines.
US company Plug Power, a pioneer of fuel cell technology, is considered one of the greatest hopefuls of the global hydrogen economy. The plans for developing a holistic ecosystem for green hydrogen are huge. Everything from production, distribution, storage and delivery to energy generation is to be offered from a single source. However, there are considerable gaps between the ambitious goals and reality. Plug Power has been unable to close a quarter with a profit for more than 25 years, and even last year's targets were revised downward several times. Now there is the threat of a class-action lawsuit from disappointed shareholders.
With the shutdown of nuclear power plants in Germany, there is a huge need for additional energy sources and types of generation. In Berlin, renewable solutions are favored, although fossil fuels have been increasingly used since the Ukraine crisis began. The semiconductor industry is integral to the Greentech wave because many intelligent chips are needed to control charging cycles, energy storage and battery management systems. Today, an electric vehicle is operated with 4 times the computing power of a conventional combustion vehicle of the last generation. The semiconductor specialist Infineon, from Munich, is ideally positioned for intelligent chips, and business is booming.