Pfizer-BioNTech provide a further vaccine boost to shares, as Ryanair climbs on Norwegian Air news

Ugur Sahin and Ozlem Tureci. Husband and wife, are cofounders of BioNTech, the German company that — with its American partner Pfizer — appears closest to rolling out a working vaccine against Covid-19.

European stock markets were buoyed, and US stock avoided declines despite a surge in the number of American Covid-19 cases, as Pfizer-BioNTech revealed even better results from its vaccine trial, saying it plans to file for regulatory approval in the US in the coming days.

Continental European stock indices rose by around 0.4%, the Ftse-100 closed 0.3% higher, and the Iseq in Dublin outperformed the European peers by gaining 1%. 

Amid a global stock buying spree, the Iseq has gained around 5% and Ryanair has soared 16% since Monday last week when Pfizer of the US and Germany's BioNTech first announced preliminary results from the trial of their BNT162b2 vaccine shot. 

The latest data showed that the vaccine was even more effective than first thought.                

This week, Moderna of the US also announced hugely successful results from its trial of a rival vaccine. 

Other drugmakers may release data from their trials, as early as later this week.   

In the US, Pfizer shares rose at one stage by 4% as it said it would apply for emergency US approval for BNT162b2.

The final results from a late-stage trial showed it was 95% effective.       

But the boost to stock markets and the price of oil as the vaccines give hope of an end to the economic pain facing the world from the pandemic may be less dramatic in the coming days.                  

"From here on in the vaccine news is less likely to have a major one day impact, but instead a steady drip-drip of news will help the market to remain steady as it looks for the next major catalyst for further upside after a very strong first half of the month," said Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online broker IG. 

"But overall equity markets appear to be pausing for breath rather than turning lower, helped along by continued positive seasonal tailwinds," he said. 

In Ireland, Ryanair gained 4% in the latest session alone as Norwegian Air applied for examinership to save the company from collapse. 

Bank of Ireland ticked higher by 1.3%, but shares in Permanent TSB slid 5.5%. 

In London, the shares of IAG, which owns Aer Lingus, British Airways, and Iberia, also climbed, by 4% on the Norwegian news.

However, shares in drugmaker AstraZeneca, which has yet to announce the results of its Phase 3 vaccine trial, fell by 1.4%.