- Healthcare stocks are under pressure in early trading on the heels of the Trump administration's release of its proposed 2018 budget that includes a 20% haircut for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to $5.8B. Observers and legislators were expecting an increase of $1B - 2B.
- The White House's budget also includes a major reorganization of NIH's institutes and centers to "help focus resources on the highest priority research and training activities."
- NIH funds ~300K scientists worldwide.
- ETFs: (IBB -0.7%)(BIB -1.5%)(BIS +1.6%)(CNCR +0.5%)(ARKG -0.4%)(PJP -0.3%)(IHE -0.3%)(XPH -0.1%)(PPH -0.1%)(IHI -0.8%)(XHE -0.4%)
- Cross-section of tickers: (MRK -0.5%)(PFE -0.7%)(AMGN -1.5%)(BIIB -4.1%)(GILD +0.1%)(ILMN -3.7%)(MDT -0.8%)(BSX -0.9%)(ABT -0.8%)(TMO -2.4%)