AstraZeneca's stock jumps after the UK authorizes emergency use of its vaccine, which it created with Oxford University

Dado Ruvic/Reuters

• AstraZeneca's stock rose on Wednesday after the UK authorized the vaccine it created with Oxford University.
• It is the second vaccine authorized for emergency use in the UK, after Pfizer and BioNTech's.
• AstraZeneca's vaccine is easy to store and requires standard refrigeration. Other COVID-19 shots need cold storage. 
• One chief market strategist said these less cumbersome logistical needs could help the vaccine end further UK restrictions.
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AstraZeneca's stock jumped on Wednesday after Britain authorized emergency use of the COVID-19 vaccine it developed with Oxford University. 

The pharma group was among the FTSE 100's leaders as its shares jumped 0.7% in early European trading. Its shares were up about 3.3% at the start of trade.

The vaccine should be available early in 2021, AstraZeneca said.

Britain's approval is "certainly good news because there is no doubt that the current coronavirus vaccine demand is nowhere close enough to supply," said Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at AvaTrade. 

The approval should improve the coronavirus situation in the UK, where COVID-19 cases continue to surge, and much of the country is in lockdown, he said.

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A new variant of the coronavirus that appears to be more easily transmissible has been blamed for the wave of new cases. The country registered a record high of 53,135 new cases and 414 fatalities on Tuesday, bringing the seven-day case count to more than 272,000. 

AstraZeneca's vaccine is the second to be approved in the UK, after Pfizer and BioNTech's. More than 600,000 people in the country have already been vaccinated with the first dose of the two-dose Pfizer shot. 

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Several parts of England went into the highest tier of coronavirus restrictions on December 20. People in these areas have been advised to stay at home.

AstraZeneca's vaccine can be stored in a standard refrigerator - the other COVID-19 vaccines require cold storage.

Its rollout could stop further restrictions in the UK, given its less cumbersome logistical and storage requirements, according to Stephen Innes, chief global market strategist at Axi. 

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