The number of deals announced in the global healthcare sector (including pharmaceuticals and medical equipment) grew by 12.3% during the week ended April 26, 2020 compared to the previous week, according to GlobalData’s deals database.

Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “The healthcare sector has been relatively resilient compared to other sectors and this is the second consecutive week of growth in deal activity amidst uncertainty and volatile market conditions due to the COVID-19 outbreak.”

Deal activity increased in key markets such as China, Canada and South Korea during the week ended April 26, 2020 compared to the previous week, while the US and the UK witnessed a decline.

The announcement of venture financing, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and partnership deals increased by 18.8%, 33.3% and 43.8%, respectively during the week ended April 26, 2020 compared to the previous week, while licensing agreement, equity offerings and private equity deal volume declined.