[Special Stock] Humasis, 19%↑ as COVID-19 Test Kits Available for Purchase at Pharmacies

The Humasis COVID-19 self-test diagnostic kit, 'Humasis COVID-19 Home Test,' is being sold at a pharmacy in downtown Seoul on the 3rd. The self-test kit works by dropping a specimen collected directly from the nasal cavity into the kit to check for positive or negative results. Infection status can be visually confirmed within 15 to 30 minutes. If two red lines (control line C and test line T) appear on the kit, the result is positive. In this case, you must visit a screening clinic operated by the health authorities to undergo the conventional test method, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] Medical diagnostic kit company Humasis is showing a sharp rise.

As of 10:16 AM on the 28th, Humasis is trading at 26,000 KRW, up 18.99% compared to the previous trading day.

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has approved a total of 74 PCR (polymerase chain reaction) antigen and antibody test diagnostic reagents for COVID-19 diagnostic testing. Among these, only three diagnostic kits, including Humasis, SD Biosensor, and Rapigen, are known to be available for individuals to purchase at pharmacies, which is interpreted as attracting buying interest in Humasis.

Among the 74 diagnostic reagents approved by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, all except the three including Humasis are for professional use only.

Meanwhile, on the 24th, Humasis announced that it had signed a supply contract for COVID-19 antigen home test kits with Celltrion.

Humasis will supply Celltrion with COVID-19 diagnostic kits worth 136.6 billion KRW from January 22 to April 30.