What has caused Australia's medicine shortages in recent years?
Supply chain researcher Peter Coomber says Australia is not one of the most attractive markets to drug manufacturers.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

News.com.au
20 minutes ago
- News.com.au
Closing Bell: ASX slips as falling oil prices undercut energy and utilities stocks
ASX slips 0.24pc in trade Falling oil prices drive energy and utilities stocks lower Gold ticks up, lifting ASX All Ords Gold Index 0.85pc The ASX fell 0.24% during the session, experiencing broad weakness on the back of renewed tariff war concerns. The market's trajectory also took a hit from an announcement from OPEC+ that it would continue to increase oil production. Brent crude oil has fallen more than 12% over the past six months, and more than 19% over the last year. The oil price dip cut the feet out from under our energy stocks, driving the sector down 1.39%. Utilities, usually less sensitive to the whims of crude pricing, also fell 0.82%. There was little movement in the positive at all on the ASX today, with only three sectors in the green. While gold prices fell to US$3315.40 an ounce last night, they recovered more than 1% today, rising to US$3326.25 an ounce as Trump started banging the tariff drum yet again. Still, the uptick offered one of the few bright spots for the ASX, lifting the All Ords Gold Index 0.85%. China signals it's considering 'forceful measures' As Stockhead's Eddy Sunarto wrote this morning, Trump has re-ignited tensions over US-China trade relations, accusing Beijing of failing to hold up its end of the deal in a post on Truth Social. While he signalled a desire to resolve the trade spat via a conversation with China's President Xi Jinping, Chinese officials are already voicing their displeasure. "China, with a responsible attitude, has earnestly addressed, strictly implemented, and actively upheld the consensus of the trade talks in Geneva," a Chinese Ministry of Commerce official stated. The official has accused the US of introducing 'multiple discriminatory restrictions against China' pointing to controls on AI chip exports, restrictions on sales of chip design software, and the revocation of visas for Chinese students. 'The US has continuously provoked new trade frictions, exacerbating uncertainty and instability in bilateral trade relations,' the official statement read. "China firmly rejects these unwarranted accusations." US car makers are deeply concerned about losing access to rare earth magnets, as China currently dominates the market, controlling about 90% of rare earth processing globally. Uncertainty is running rampant as traders wait to see how far China and Trump will take this new stoush. Section 899 'revenge' tax draws ire Already widely criticised for drastically increasing government deficits and reducing the US judicial system's ability to enforce orders on the government, Trump's new tax bill also contains a 'revenge' tax measure that has alarmed international traders. While the full scope of the proposed changes and their application is unclear, the bill would give the administration powers to impose a tax of up to 20% on foreigners with US-based investments. It's designed to be used in cases where the administration believes other countries are imposing unfair or discriminatory taxes against US companies, thus the 'revenge tax' moniker. 'We see this legislation as creating the scope for the US administration to transform a trade war into a capital war,' Deutsche Bank analyst George Saravelos said. If the bill passes, the provision could make foreign investors think twice about parking their money in US assets. Considering trust in US government bonds is shaky at present, the bill could contribute to a marked pull-back of foreign investment in the country. ASX SMALL CAP LEADERS Today's best performing small cap stocks: Security Name Last % Change Volume Market Cap BYH Bryah Resources Ltd 0.011 120% 49647577 $4,349,768 CRI Criticalim 0.022 69% 84430831 $34,949,832 OSL Oncosil Medical 0.003 50% 100000 $9,213,164 RNX Renegade Exploration 0.0035 40% 9101121 $3,220,909 OB1 Orbminco Limited 0.002 33% 3580335 $3,596,352 DXN DXN Limited 0.0475 32% 4679906 $10,753,331 LKY Locksleyresources 0.105 31% 30947300 $11,733,333 IIQ Inoviq Ltd 0.57 30% 2628030 $49,118,433 BCC Beam Communications 0.155 29% 495488 $10,370,631 FTL Firetail Resources 0.075 25% 5820054 $22,801,679 8CO 8Common Limited 0.02 25% 446928 $3,585,518 BLZ Blaze Minerals Ltd 0.0025 25% 168753 $3,133,896 FHS Freehill Mining Ltd. 0.005 25% 5048301 $12,934,111 IS3 I Synergy Group Ltd 0.005 25% 101989 $2,002,920 KPO Kalina Power Limited 0.005 25% 10300784 $11,731,879 TEM Tempest Minerals 0.005 25% 332524 $2,938,119 VFX Visionflex Group Ltd 0.0025 25% 2854782 $6,735,721 SRJ SRJ Technologies 0.016 23% 180380 $7,872,515 BSN Basinenergylimited 0.017 21% 252751 $1,719,610 BPP Babylon Pump & Power 0.006 20% 5624300 $13,852,835 EAT Entertainment 0.006 20% 28943 $6,543,930 EE1 Earths Energy Ltd 0.006 20% 32378 $2,649,821 GLL Galilee Energy Ltd 0.006 20% 185049 $3,535,964 TEG Triangle Energy Ltd 0.003 20% 1349753 $5,223,085 PEX Peel Mining Limited 0.08 19% 2529078 $38,932,664 Making news… Inoviq (ASX:IIQ) has unveiled breakthrough results for its early ovarian cancer screening test, showing 77% sensitivity and 99.6% specificity across all stages, with no early-stage cancers missed in the study. The AI-powered blood test, which uses exosome tech and runs on high-throughput lab instruments, was presented this week at the big ASCO cancer conference in Chicago. There's currently no screening test on the market. Firetail Resources (ASX:FTL) has locked in options to acquire two high-grade gold projects in the US, one in Nevada's massive Walker Lane belt and the other near the legendary Homestake Mine in South Dakota. The Excelsior Springs project comes with strong drill hits like 51.8m at 4g/t gold and historic production of over 19,000oz at 41g/t, while the Bella project boasts rock chip samples over 100g/t and sits just 20km from the 42Moz Homestake deposit. FTL is spending just under a million bucks in cash and issuing shares to get the exploration going. DXN (ASX:DXN) has scored a $4.6 million deal to deliver three modular data centre units to Globalstar in Hawaii by the end of 2025. It won the contract after a competitive tender. The company said the deal puts DXN deeper into the booming satellite and LEO (Low Earth Orbit) comms space, and marks another step in its push into edge-ready data centres. Babylon Pump and Power (ASX:BPP) has built out its specialist pumping and hydrotesting offering with the acquisition of BPY Holdings Pty Ltd, a WA-based specialist provider. The company reckons the move will give it greater rental scale, strengthening its geographic reach and adding a profitable dry hire business to the platform. ASX SMALL CAP LAGGARDS Today's worst performing small cap stocks: Security Name Last % Change Volume Market Cap ASR Asra Minerals Ltd 0.002 -33% 9409622 $8,299,608 HLX Helix Resources 0.002 -33% 42791991 $10,092,581 ADD Adavale Resource Ltd 0.0015 -25% 4120010 $4,574,558 CZN Corazon Ltd 0.0015 -25% 1333 $2,369,145 EEL Enrg Elements Ltd 0.0015 -25% 2296906 $6,507,557 NAE New Age Exploration 0.003 -25% 176721 $10,637,596 SFG Seafarms Group Ltd 0.0015 -25% 159652 $9,673,198 SRN Surefire Rescs NL 0.0015 -25% 1825999 $4,972,891 TYX Tyranna Res Ltd 0.003 -25% 901582 $13,153,701 EVEDA EVE Health Group Ltd 0.03 -25% 956258 $5,274,483 MIO Macarthur Minerals 0.015 -25% 18000 $3,993,310 HWK Hawk Resources. 0.013 -24% 2923444 $4,605,801 CVR Cavalierresources 0.215 -23% 127355 $16,195,821 GTE Great Western Exp. 0.01 -23% 2804919 $7,380,853 VBS Vectus Biosystems 0.047 -22% 539982 $3,196,699 BTM Breakthrough Minsltd 0.1 -20% 2576443 $5,982,437 AVE Avecho Biotech Ltd 0.004 -20% 392525 $15,867,318 AYT Austin Metals Ltd 0.004 -20% 1000000 $7,870,957 BP8 Bph Global Ltd 0.002 -20% 19757302 $2,627,462 CDE Codeifai Limited 0.008 -20% 1118215 $3,260,318 HPC Thehydration 0.008 -20% 1419763 $3,833,009 RGL Riversgold 0.004 -20% 14854729 $8,418,563 VRC Volt Resources Ltd 0.004 -20% 1896263 $23,423,890 1AI Algorae Pharma 0.005 -17% 1478761 $10,124,368 ALY Alchemy Resource Ltd 0.005 -17% 4137997 $7,068,458 IN CASE YOU MISSED IT Singular Health Group (ASX:SHG) has completed a share issue for a placement with Marin and Sons, fulfilling the terms of a follow-on investment from SHG's largest shareholder. Marin and Sons invested $773k at $0.16 per share on May 15, 2024, with the issue of shares approved by SHG shareholders on March 19, 2025. In today's Break It Down, host Tylah Tully explains the latest developments in Sweden, where the country is looking at potentially removing a ban on uranium mining. Aura Energy (ASX:AEE) has interest in uranium projects in Sweden, and is working with the coalition to get the ban lifted. Trading halts Challenger Gold (ASX:CEL) – cap raise Eclipse Metals (ASX:EPM) – resource upgrade Estrella Resources (ASX:ESR) – exploration update New Frontier Minerals (ASX:NFM) – cap raise Patriot Resources (ASX:PAT) – copper discovery QuickFee (ASX:QFE) – debt refinancing and cap raise Sunshine Metals (ASX:SHN) – drilling results At Stockhead, we tell it like it is. While Singular Health Group and Aura Energy are Stockhead advertisers, they did not sponsor this article.

News.com.au
29 minutes ago
- News.com.au
ASX slumps during Monday's trading on Steel and aluminium tariffs
Australian stocks fell slightly on Monday, following a negative lead in from Wall Street on the back of US President Donald Trump doubling tariffs on steel and aluminium. The benchmark ASX 200 index slid 20.60 points or 0.24 per cent to 8,414.10. The broader All Ordinaries also fell, down 22.80 or 0.26 per cent to 8,637.50. The Australian dollar finished in the green and is now buying 64.68 US cents. On an overall negative day for the market, eight of the 11 sectors dragged the index lower, with telecommunications, industrials and consumer staples being the rare bright spots. All three major iron ore miners slipped, with BHP falling 1.23 per cent to $37.78, Rio Tinto slumping 1.70 per cent to $110.75 and Fortescue Metals retreating 2.53 per cent to $15. It was a mixed day for the big four banks, with CBA rose 0.27 per cent to $176.42 to be the only major bank to trade higher. Shares in Westpac slumped 1.17 per cent to $32.18, while NAB is down 0.68 per cent to $37.74 and ANZ finished in the red down 0.21 per cent to $28.98. Despite the price of crude oil rising, petroleum companies Ampol fell 0.74 per cent to $25.34, Woodside slid 1.12 per cent to $22, and Santos slumped 1.52 per cent to $6.49. During Monday's trading, US futures dived after US President Donald Trump said he would double the tariffs placed on steel and aluminium from Wednesday. IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said the Australian market has performed 'reasonably well' despite a number of negative headlines impacting the ASX 200 including the latest tariff move by President Trump. 'We had a 25 to 50 per cent tariff added to steel and aluminium exports, which obviously was a hit to sentiment,' he said. Mr Sycamore also pointed to President Trump's 'big beautiful bill', which would extend Trump's tax cuts from 2017 at the same time as lifting the debt ceiling, and increasing spending on border security and the military. 'We need to be mindful that revenues need to be raised given the fact Trump's bill is before the senate and he is going to want to pass that, so he will need to show revenue gains and that can only be done through the different avenues to raise tariffs,' he said. He also pointed to military moves both in the Middle East and Ukraine-Russia conflict adding to global uncertainty. In company news, shares in Brickworks and Washington H Soul Patts were the two biggest winners on the ASX. Shares in Soul Patts leapt 16.44 per cent to $43 while Brickworks soared 27.59 per cent to $35.10 after the two businesses announced a $14bn merger. BlueScope Steel also jumped 4.4 per cent to $23.75 on the back of Trump's tariff decision, with the market seeing it as a major winner as it makes half its money from operations within the US.


SBS Australia
an hour ago
- SBS Australia
'We will determine our defence budget': PM defies US calls to increase defence spending
'We will determine our defence budget': PM defies US calls to increase defence spending Published 2 June 2025, 3:25 am Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has resisted calls made by US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth in Singapore to boost Australia's defence spending, ahead of his highly anticipated first face-to-face meeting with US President Donald Trump later this month. It comes amid backlash against the US doubling tariffs on steel and aluminium imports.