Biotechnology company $Moderna (MRNA.US)$ said, after the United States, the Canadian government approved its updated Covid-19 vaccine. The stock price rose 4.5% to $72.28 on Tuesday afternoon.

The company announced on Tuesday that the Canadian Department of Health has approved the vaccine for the KP.2 Covid-19 variant of the Sars-Cov-2 virus and will begin providing updated doses to the Canadian Public Health Agency.

Moderna's Covid-19 mRNA vaccine targeting the SARS-CoV-2 variant JN.1 has been approved in Japan, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom. Other regulatory institutions are reviewing additional regulatory applications for Moderna's updated Covid-19 vaccine targeting KP.2 or JN.1.

The company previously stated that it is reducing reliance on the Covid-19 vaccine. Moderna announced last week that it will cut $1.1 billion in annual research and development expenses.