Business

A new report out examining how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the U.S. cannabis industry shows consumer purchasing spiked, dropped, then started to stabilize in the time between when things began to unravel for the nation in March until recently.

In other words, it appears that the experience for cannabis, as a product, wasn’t much different from other mainstream products, such as toilet paper, certain foods, and other essentials.

It is a fact that the legal cannabis industry has tremendous potential to generate significant tax revenue for states and municipalities in the years ahead. Earlier this year, for example, the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration reported that, from the day legal cannabis retail sales began in January 2018 until January 2020, the state had already collected more than $1 billion in taxes. And those are only state-level taxes.

For startups and established businesses, compliance issues can be time-consuming and confusing. But they don't have to be daunting.

Despite the massive growth in the cannabis space over the last decade, the industry is often more heavily scrutinized than other industries. But unfortunately, many cannabis businesses — especially those on a smaller scale — aren’t adequately prepared to deal with compliance issues, putting them at risk of facing heavy fines, losing their licenses, and even going out of business. 

Thousands in the cannabis industry have lost their jobs on the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic. Canopy Growth Corp. CGC (TSE: WEED) and Aurora Cannabis Inc. ACB (TSE: ACB) announced layoffs and 

A win for Democrat Joe Biden is expected to bode well for medical cannabis businesses in the US

The cannabis investment market has shown its resilience through the coronavirus crisis and the second half of 2020 is looking positive, says Nawan Butt of Purpose Investments. 

Cannabis is likely to be a key talking point in the US presidential election in November and Butt says a potential win for Democrat Joe Biden would bode especially well for medical cannabis businesses in the US.

Cannabis sector-related exchange traded funds led the charge on Tuesday, shaking off the broader market malaise, as Canopy Growth (NYSE: CGC) partners with Martha Stewart to launch a website to sell CBD products in the U.S.

The medical cannabis industry is booming in New Mexico. The industry says the effects of COVID have dramatically increased demand and they’re trying to keep up.

“What we learned was it wasn’t just a New Mexico thing, in fact, the number of transactions have doubled in New Mexico, prices have gone up and the supply is pretty much in a very dire situation, very short,” said Duke Rodriguez, President, and CEO of Ultra Health.

Estimates published in the newly released Marijuana Business Factbook show the total economic impact of legal cannabis sales increasing 181 percent by 2024.

American marijuana businesses could pump up to $130 billion on an annual basis into the U.S. economy by 2024, a staggering figure that highlights the true reach of the nation’s cannabis industry.

Canadian pot producer Canopy Growth (CGC) launched a website to sell CBD products in the U.S., including those from its partnership with better-living guru Martha Stewart. Canopy Growth stock and other marijuana stocks rose on Monday. That includes Aphria (APHA), which jumped past a buy point.

Banking institutions and accountants offering services to cannabis businesses would have a safe harbor in California law under one of the weed-related bills awaiting state lawmakers’ action when they return to Sacramento this week.