The healthcare sector advanced nearly 1% at midday Friday.

Cogstate (ASX:CGS) expects its CNS clinical trial segment to grow to a range of AU$1 billion to AU$1.3 billion by 2030 from its present range of AU$600 million to AU$700 million.

On the flip side, the information technology sector fell nearly 2%, tracking losses on the Nasdaq composite index, which fell 1.9%.

Etherstack's (ASX:ESK) subsidiary secured an AU$2.5 million contract from the Commonwealth of Australia to advance defense communications technology. The management expects the contract revenues to be fully recognized before Dec. 31.