Health activists are stepping up the pressure on COVID-19 vaccine companies to share their IP and reveal their costs, while the European Medicines Agency has published regulatory guidance advising vaccine developers to aim for a point estimate of efficacy of at least 50%.

CureVac seals EU Deal for 405 million doses of CVnCoV, a second Phase III trial for J&J’s COVID-19 vaccine starts, and BioNTech, Fosun get OK for China vaccine trial.

As data start to come in on the first coronavirus vaccines, hopes are rising that vaccination campaigns will be able to begin in the next month or two, although experts have cautioned against unbridled optimism. Uncertainties also remain over questions such as whom to vaccinate first and how to assure equitable access in less wealthy parts of the world.

The average return for companies that went public in the US through the end of September was 49.4% as of 5 October. The fourth quarter started with four additional initial public offerings on 1 October.