Trump wants to loosen restrictions on classification, marijuana stocks collectively soar.

Multiple US local media reports that President Donald Trump is expected to push for the reclassification of marijuana as a "lower-risk drug," this latest market dynamic undoubtedly directly boosted US marijuana producers' stocks in pre-market trading on Friday. Leading the gains are: Tilray Brands (TLRY.US) surged more than 30% pre-market, Canopy Growth (CGC.US) up 23%, Aurora Cannabis (ACB.US) up 20%, SNDL (SNDL.US) up 14%, Cronos Group (CRON.US) up 12%. According to media reports, Trump is considering moving marijuana from "Schedule I" - which indicates no medical use and high potential for abuse - to "Schedule III" - a category of substances with lower dependency and addictive potential. Reportedly, Trump earlier on Thursday morning held a conference call with US House Speaker Mike Johnson, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Mehmet Oz, as well as several marijuana industry executives to discuss the matter. However, a senior White House official contacted said that Trump himself has not made a final executive decision. Schedule III drugs have widely accepted medical uses, but there is still a possibility of slight abuse and risks of physical or psychological dependence. Examples include ketamine, synthetic steroids, and Tylenol containing codeine. Schedule I drugs mainly include LSD and heroin. In March 2024, during the Biden administration, the Department of Justice proposed to reclassify marijuana to Schedule III. However, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) first rescheduled a hearing, and then completely canceled the hearings on the matter. During the 2024 US presidential campaign, Trump openly promised to "unlock the medical uses of marijuana, reclassify it as a Schedule III drug". Reclassifying can not only reduce criminal consequences for personal use, but also alleviate some federal tax and business barriers (such as allowing domestic marijuana businesses in the US to deduct business expenses), improve the business environment, and benefit companies and employees in the legal marijuana industry. Prior to officially being nominated as Secretary of Health and Human Services by Trump in 2024, Kennedy had repeatedly called for an end to marijuana criminalization and the implementation of a regulated legal sales system, which is seen as a relatively open-minded approach by some reformers and industry supporters. During his Senate confirmation hearing, Kennedy stated that HHS will "listen to and review scientific data on the reclassification of marijuana," and will make decisions based on the existing review by professional agencies like the DEA, rather than actively proposing significant legislative or administrative relaxations.