Burrill Biotech Index rises 4.4% in August versus Dow's 1% and Nasdaq's 2% gains

"Biotech rode a surging market in the final trading days on the capital markets before the US Labor Day holiday weekend," said Steven Burrill, chief executive of Burrill & Co, a San Francisco, USA-based global life sciences firm whose principal activities are in venture capital, merchant banking and media. "The Burrill Biotech Select Index closed the month up 4.4%, well ahead of the Dow's 1% gain and Nasdaq's 2% increase," he said.

Driving the Burrill Biotech Select Index were Onyx Pharmaceuticals (up 42%) and Vertex Pharmaceuticals (21% higher). Onyx' jump was based on positive clinical data, while Vertex continued its upward climb, as investors maintained their belief that telaprevir, the company's experimental hepatitis C drug, will reach blockbuster status.

Amgen's woes continued and, in the wake of health concerns surrounding its anemia drugs, Aranesp (darbepoetin) and Epogen (epoetin alfa), it announced that it would shed 12-14% of its employees and cancelled nearly $2.0 billion worth of capital projects. The firm's shares closed down 7% for August and are 27% lower year-to-date. It was not so long ago that industry heavyweights Amgen and Genentech were flirting with market capitalizations of $100.0 billion. At the end of August, Amgen's market cap stood at $54.0 billion and Genentech's was $79.0 billion.