Remarkably, 4 days on we still have no clear winner in the US election, states hang in the balance as voting draws out like a slow blade. The US braces for demonstrations and backlash on the eventual result, seemingly either way it falls. Meanwhile, the rest of the world has arrived at the stage of ‘close your eyes and it’ll all be over soon’.
However, one clear winner emerging from the potential swing to the Democratic candidate Joe Biden has been the US Cannabis and CBD industry, as of market close on Friday the stock ticker for Tilray Inc (TLRY), one of the USA’s largest cannabis based companies, saw a rise of 68.65% this week alone. Similar stories over at Aurora Cannabis Inc (ACB) with a whopping 141.73% growth inside the week. This drastically improved market sentiment around cannabis-based corporations tells us a lot about the future for these businesses.
Combined with the latest wave of legalization across the USA with Arizona, Mississippi, New Jersey, Oregon and South Dakota have all opted for legalization at the state level, showcasing further acceptance of the shift towards a fully legal cannabis industry in the coming years.
As the week drew to a close, it was becoming more and more likely the democratic presidential candidate was on the cards to win, the sentiment from the democrats has often been more lenient towards cannabis in both a legal and regulatory standpoint, the US’s recent wave of legalization across the country has had consumers rejoicing at the market freedom around cannabis based products.
With a huge proportion of the UK CBD industry importing raw materials from the US, an America with a more developed, more competitive and ultimately better equipped cannabis industry can only be a positive outcome for UK businesses and consumers.
With a huge proportion of the UK CBD industry importing raw materials from the US, an America with a more developed, more competitive and ultimately better equipped cannabis industry can only be a positive outcome for UK businesses and consumers, with Brexit lurking in the background for the next few weeks, our relationships and ties with US industry have never been more important than they are now.
It’s difficult to predict exactly how the benefits of this increasingly likely new US administration will pan out for Cannabis and CBD businesses, the likelihood of the industry drawing better talent as the marketplace expands is high, institutional investors may see clearer paths to higher returns in an unencumbered market that’s able to operate free from legal stigmatization. Those elements combined will drive further growth, product development and innovation within the sector. Investment to drive scale and profitability within the industry will be essential components over the next 5 years. That will ultimately have a significant knock on when it comes to the price of raw materials which is already on a steady decline here in the UK.
Time will tell how the next 4 years will impact the overall marketplace for cannabis and CBD, we see it as an overwhelmingly positive move towards a more advanced CBD and Cannabis industry, one where retailers and consumers can rely on product standards and benefit from the increasing economies of scale.