A series by finews.asia has different fund managers talking about New Year’s customs in their favorite cities or hometowns.

Rune Sand, Portfolio Manager Global Health Care DNB Asset Management

According to a survey, 34 percent of Norwegians eat turkey on New Year's Eve. This makes turkey the most common ingredient eaten on New Year's Eve in Norway. In second place comes «pinnekjøtt», cured ribs, usually of lamb. This dish is more common at Christmas but is also popular on New Year's Eve.

On New Year's Day, it is a tradition, similar to the popular lead pouring in Switzerland, to prepare rice pudding and hide an almond.

Hit the Jackpot

Rune Sand (Image: DNB)

The dish is said to bring the eater a sweet year. Whoever comes across the almond hidden in the rice pudding has hit the jackpot: a happy year with plenty of wealth and health lies ahead.

Booming Weight Loss Drugs

With so much to eat, many people then go on a diet in January. The weight loss drugs Wegovy and Zepbound from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly are causing real hype this year. However, there are numerous opportunities in the healthcare sector in 2024 that go beyond the diet trend.

Demographic factors have always been a classic driver for the healthcare industry – a growing global population requires more medical care. Increasing prosperity in emerging countries is also fueling demand.

Successful Treatments

Currently, however, there are also technological innovations that investors can accompany with investments in pharmaceutical and biotech stocks. Immunotherapy is playing an increasingly important role in the field of cancer research.

The aggressive treatment of early stages of cancer in particular has proven to be successful. Early detection will play an even greater role in the future to be able to better treat aggressive diseases such as pancreatic cancer or myeloid leukemia.

Targeting Deadly Types of Cancer

Companies focusing on this area could benefit. The field of diagnostics is also interesting because the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has tightened price regulation for certain blockbuster drugs in the USA - investments in oncology have therefore become more complicated.

Nevertheless, innovation remains an important driver of growth in the healthcare sector. One exciting future trend is radiopharmaceuticals, i.e. drugs that contain certain radioactive isotopes and can damage cancer cells. Companies researching this new technology often target deadly types of cancer.

This is because it is easier to demonstrate added value compared to standard therapies in clinical trials – for acute myeloid blood cancer, for example, hospitals still rely on chemotherapy, which was already the treatment of choice in a similar form in the 1960s.

Improving IT Security

In addition to biotechnological innovations, the AI revolution that began around a year ago is also providing impetus in the healthcare sector. The technology is already helping to analyze patient data, create important documents for approval procedures and improve IT security.

When it comes to analyzing large volumes of data, in particular, AI can significantly increase productivity and make complex projects possible even for smaller companies.

Hopeful AI Drives Evaluations

Companies across the entire healthcare spectrum are investing in AI – from large biopharmaceutical companies to solution providers in the life sciences and medtech companies. In addition to major innovations in a shorter period, AI also promises cost reductions outside of research and development.

However, investors focusing on companies in the healthcare sector must also pay attention to valuations in connection with the growing AI fantasy – some stocks are currently already too expensive.