Hikma surges after tornado damages Pfizer injectables plant

Hikma Pharmaceuticals surged on Thursday, with traders pointing to news that a major Pfizer injectables plant in North Carolina was hit by a tornado and heavily damaged on Wednesday.

According to reports, Pfizer said the 250 acre site, with 1.4m square feet of manufacturing space, "is one of the largest sterile injectable facilities in the world".

Nearly 25% of all sterile injectables used in US hospitals are produced there.

Traders said that according to Bloomberg TV, the production that will be lost from the Pfizer plant can likely be replaced by Hikma, which produces the same injectables.

At 0920 BST, Hikma shares were up 7.7% at 2,101.68p.