BioNTech SE - ADR (NASDAQ:BNTX) shares were trading higher by 8.27% at $198.80 in Monday’s premarket session after the company announced a Chinese joint venture to make 1 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses.

BioNTech is a Germany-based biotechnology company that focuses on developing cancer therapeutics, including individualized immunotherapy, as well as vaccines for infectious diseases including COVID-19. 

CureVac BV (NASDAQ:CVAC) shares were trading higher by 5.08% at $105.50 amid reports that the company's COVID-19 vaccine is close to receiving European approval.

More than the COVID-19 vaccine, CureVac a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, developing a new class of transformative medicines based on messenger ribonucleic acid that has the potential to improve the lives of people. The company's product portfolio includes clinical and pre-clinical candidates across multiple disease indications in oncology, prophylactic vaccines and protein therapy.