The CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) share price had a rare off day on Wednesday.

The biotherapeutics company’s shares finished the day 6% lower at $288.00.

Shareholders will no doubt be hoping for better on Thursday. Especially after the release of an announcement after the market close yesterday.

What did CSL announce?

According to its announcement, CSL has entered into a long term strategic partnership with the world leader in serving science, Thermo Fisher Scientific.

This partnership is for the lease of CSL’s state of the art biotech manufacturing facility, which is currently under construction in Lengnau, Switzerland.

The company made the move following a strategic review to determine a pathway that would fully optimise the capabilities of the facility once construction is completed next year.

How will CSL benefit?

Thermo Fisher will lease and operate the facility and is responsible for providing production to support CSL’s biologics portfolio. It will also provide other contract manufacturing services such as packaging and fill-and-finish for a number of CSL products.

CSL Chief Operating Officer Paul McKenzie commented: “As part of the strategic review, we are in the process of transforming our end-to-end supply chain with a view to ensuring the company’s global manufacturing network is operating at a best-in-class level. This includes balancing internal investment with access to capabilities and capacities that are available with an experienced partner.”

“CSL will now be able to access a wide range of capabilities provided by a leading pharma services provider, and we are confident that the management of the facility and the team will be in the very best of hands,” he added.

This isn’t the first time the two parties have worked together.

For some time now, Thermo Fisher has been a key provider of third-party services to CSL. This includes fill-and-finish, cell culture growth media, single-use technologies, and laboratory instruments and supplies.

There was no update in relation to its guidance for FY 2020. I would interpret this to mean the company remains on track to achieve it. Management has previously guided to a profit of ~US$2,110 million to US$2,170 million this year.

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James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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On Wednesday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) fought hard but fell just short at the close. The benchmark index dropped 5 points to 5,775 points.

Will the market be able to bounce back from this on Thursday? Here are five things to watch:

ASX 200 expected to storm higher.

It looks set to be a very good day of trade for the ASX 200. According to the latest SPI futures, the benchmark index is expected to open the day 51 points or 0.9% higher this morning. This follows a great night of trade on Wall Street which saw the Dow Jones rise 2.2%, the S&P 500 climb 1.5%, and the Nasdaq push 0.8% higher.

Oil prices crash lower.

Energy producers including Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) could come under pressure after oil prices crashed lower. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price fell 6.8% to US$32.00 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price dropped 5.8% to US$34.08 a barrel. Concerns over U.S.-China trade tensions weighed on prices.

Gold price edges higher.

Gold miners such as Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) and St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) will be on watch after a subdued night for the gold price. According to CNBC, the spot gold price is up slightly to US$1,711.00 an ounce. The precious metal fell to a two-week low on Wednesday.

PolyNovo insider sale.

The PolyNovo Ltd (ASX: PNV) share price could come under pressure today after it revealed that one of its directors has been selling shares. Non-Executive Director Dr David McQuillan sold 441,687 shares on market on Wednesday for approximately $1.18 million. The director made the share sale to fund the purchase of property ahead of his move from the United States to Melbourne. Dr McQuillan still holds 770,317 PolyNovo shares.

Blackmores shares to return.

The Blackmores Limited (ASX: BKL) share price will be on watch when it returns from its trading halt this morning. Blackmores requested the trading halt while it undertook a capital raising to raise up to $117 million. This comprises a fully underwritten $92 million institutional placement and a non-underwritten share purchase plan of up to $25 million. The company also provided a trading update which revealed that it was on track to achieve its guidance in FY 2020.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Blackmores Limited. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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