Marijuana-Stock Bulls Send Horizons ETF Into 2018 on a High Note

(Bloomberg) -- It was a great year to be invested in cannabis stocks.

Horizons Marijuana Life Sciences Index ETF, the largest marijuana-focused exchange-traded fund, has surged 74 percent since it debuted in April this year, bringing its market value to almost C$450 million ($358 million). While the fund dipped on the last trading day of the year, it's still up 12 percent in just the past week.

Of course some individual stocks performed even better in 2017, with Delta 9 Cannabis Inc. up more than 1,200 percent and WeedMD Inc. up 165 percent. Bloomberg's North American Marijuana Index has climbed 48 percent since its creation in March.

Bloomberg noted the gains in marijuana-exposed stocks earlier this week as California rolls toward recreational legalization. Canopy Growth Corp. Chief Executive Officer Bruce Linton also told Bloomberg in a recent interview he sees globalization of medical pot as a theme for 2018.

--With assistance from Jeremy R. Cooke

To contact the reporter on this story: Michael Bellusci in Toronto at mbellusci2@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Arie Shapira at ashapira3@bloomberg.net, Brendan Walsh, Randall Jensen

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