The AU has secured 270 million Covid-19 vaccine doses for the continent from drug manufacturers Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson.
Britain’s AstraZeneca has agreed to buy U.S. drugmaker, Alexion Pharmaceuticals for $39 billion in its largest-ever deal.
The UK government is set to approve the COVID-19 vaccine developed by BioNTech SE and Pfizer Inc next week.
Crude oil prices hit their highest price levels since March at the second trading session of the week.
AstraZeneca has said that its vaccine being developed in collaboration with the University of Oxford could be 90% effective.
The experimental vaccine being developed by AstraZeneca Plc produced a robust immune response in older adults and the elderly.
British scientists have indicated a mass roll-out of COVID-19 vaccines in a few months time.
Four COVID-19 vaccines are currently in the final stages of a clinical trial.
Australian shares also rallied higher by 0.6%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 Index gained 0.7%.
Brent lost 6.6% for the week, adding to the previous week’s drop of 5.3%.
It is also one of the 9 vaccine candidates around the world in the final stage of human trials.
AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine is being developed in collaboration with University of Oxford.
