Connecticut has become the latest US state to legalise recreational use of marijuana.

The state’s governor has just signed a bill to allow people aged 21 and older to possess and consume marijuana, making it the 19th US state to do so.

Here’s a graph showing how fast the market will grow in the US.

 

Cannabis growth in the US. Source- New Frontier Data

 

South of the border, Mexico’s Supreme Court has last week ruled that the ban on recreational use of cannabis to be unconstitutional.

The ruling however stopped short of legalising all marijuana use, with Mexican adults still required to apply for use permits.

Across the Atlantic, cannabis legalisation has become an election campaign issue in Germany.

German opposition party Free Democrats has rallied behind the commercialisation of cannabis, calling for the legalisation of recreational marijuana, and to develop the “Cannabis Made in Germany” into a big export product.

Rinehart’s cannabis play

Back home, Australia’s richest person Gina Rinehart has branched out her investments into cannabis.

Rinehart made a $15 million investment into ASX-listed Little Green Pharma (ASX:LGP) as part of the company’s $27 million capital raising.

Through this investment, her company will own a 10 per cent stake in LGP – a WA cannabis cultivator which is raising the money to acquire Canopy Growth, a medicinal cannabis facility in Denmark it hopes to help it expand into European markets.

The biggest cannabis mover on the ASX however, is that of Suda Pharma (ASX:SUD), which has risen by 50 per cent over the past week.

Suda’s share price popped last week after announcing an oversubscribed $3.65 million capital raise to fund the initial development of its newly acquired iNKT cell therapy for cancer treatment.

Other cannabis announcements you might have missed

Althea Group (ASX:AGH) has exported its first commercial shipment of products destined for the emerging South African medicinal cannabis market. The company says S. Africa’s legal medicinal cannabis industry is worth approximately US$667 million by 2023.

Zelira Therapeutics (ASX:ZLD) reported that clinical trial results of its cannabinoid-based insomnia drug, Zenivol, has been published in the prestigious peer-reviewed journal SLEEP.

Cronos (ASX:CAU) has launched a new CBD brand, Saiph, in the key North Asian markets of Japan and Hong Kong. Saiph is a CBD personal care brand that is formulated for sensitive skin, and has been allergy tested to Japanese cosmetic standards.

Elixinol Wellness (ASX:EXL) share price dropped by more than 7 per cent on Tuesday after terminating its proposed acquisition of German-based Cannacare Health Gmbh. Elixinol revealed that a changed German market outlook with rapidly intensifying competition to be the main factor for the cancellation.