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Learn about China’s biomedical breakthroughs, from cutting-edge pharmaceuticals to life-saving research, driving global health innovation.

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Biomedicine

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Policy
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Industry Trends
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Illustration: Henry Wong
New medical drugs

6 of the best: the billion-dollar biotechs putting China on the map

China’s biotech renaissance is gathering pace as home-grown innovators strike billion-dollar licensing deals with global giants.

Made in China 2025

Fosun Pharma unit licenses lung cancer drug to Eisai in US$1.55 billion deal

IPO

Morgan Stanley sees another record year for Hong Kong IPOs as pipeline hits 450

China’s private sector

AstraZeneca unveils US$15 billion China investment as Starmer visits Beijing

The drug maker says the funding will expand medicines production and research capabilities, as London and Beijing seek to rebuild momentum.

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AstraZeneca’s US$15 billion China bet marks the biggest deal of Starmer’s Beijing trip. Photo: Shutterstock
AstraZeneca’s US$15 billion China bet marks the biggest deal of Starmer’s Beijing trip. Photo: Shutterstock
Biomedicine: Industry Trends

China could approve first AI-designed drug next year, Merck executive says

AI and genetics are creating a ‘seismic shift’ in the pharmaceutical business, experts on Asian Financial Forum panel say.

Banking & finance

Global funds, from BlackRock to Temasek, back China’s largest biotech firms

Global institutional investors have built up sizeable positions in firms including Innovent, 3SBio, WuXi Biologics, Jiangsu Hengrui, Akeso and BeOne.

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Biomedicine: Industry Trends

Harbour BioMed stake in US drug developer shows Chinese firms’ growing clout

Latest example of Chinese drug maker acquiring equity in overseas partner shows they are becoming true development partners, analysts say.

Global drug companies no longer view Chinese firms as contract manufacturers, but as development partners, an analyst says. Photo: Shutterstock
Global drug companies no longer view Chinese firms as contract manufacturers, but as development partners, an analyst says. Photo: Shutterstock
Made in China 2025

Exclusive | China challenges US in AI drug race, but rivals still reliant on each other

While US biotech firms increase use of Chinese clinical data, Chinese firms need US counterparts for monetisation, investor and scientist says.

China’s private sector

China’s drug and medical device sector fuels growth with record licensing deals

China’s pharmaceutical industry surges on ageing demand and global expansion, with revenue forecast to top US$2.1 trillion by 2030.

Made in China 2025

Novartis, SciNeuro deal offers hope for 55 million suffering from Alzheimer’s

SciNeuro’s anti-amyloid programme is one of the firm’s key strategic research and development priorities to target the brain disease.

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Swiss drugmaker Novartis has gained global rights over SciNeuro’s novel amyloid beta targeted antibody programme. Photo: Reuters
Made in China 2025

China’s weight-loss drug war: prices slashed up to 80% as obesity crisis worsens

Foreign, local firms fight for market share as number of overweight or obese adults could top 630 million by 2050, from 400 million in 2021.

There were more than 400 million overweight or obese adults in China in 2021, according to a study. Photo: Getty Images
There were more than 400 million overweight or obese adults in China in 2021, according to a study. Photo: Getty Images
Banking & finance

TCM firms eye Hong Kong IPOs to fuel global expansion

Over the past year, 34 innovation and technology, life and health science companies set up or expanded their operations in Hong Kong.

Made in China 2025

Chinese biotechs strike a record US$136 billion in out-licensing deals in 2025

Chinese drug makers signed 157 out-licensing deals with global pharmaceutical firms last year versus 94 a year earlier.

Made in China 2025

Meow or never: China’s pudgy pets spark race for weight-loss drugs

Fosun and Huadong biotech labs eye feline obesity drugs as owners weigh cuteness against health risks.

The total pet population in China reached 430 million in 2024, with nearly one-third of urban cats classified as obese, according to the China Pet Industry Association. Photo: Shutterstock
Banking & finance

The ‘biology winter’ thaws: why investors are buying Hong Kong’s biotech IPOs

A wave of China out-licensing deals is feeding a biotech comeback in Hong Kong, where IPOs and follow-on placements are surging.

Healthcare firms now account for about a fifth of the more than 300 listing applications in the city. Photo: Shutterstock
Healthcare firms now account for about a fifth of the more than 300 listing applications in the city. Photo: Shutterstock
IPO

China’s Zhipu AI launches US$560 million share sale amid heated IPO tech race

The company, marketed overseas as Z.ai, eyes US$6.6 billion valuation with Hong Kong’s first large language model listing.

IPO

China vital to Insilico’s plan to build biotech’s AI ‘Einstein’ for new drugs

US firm, backed by Fosun and Tencent, expands research base in China as it develops an AI-powered drug-discovery tool.

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Made in China 2025

China’s rising biotech clout on show in flurry of billion-dollar licensing deals

A burst of overseas licensing pacts is spotlighting China’s biotech sector, as Jacobio, Coherent Biopharma and Harbour BioMed land deals.

The latest transactions reflect a broader pattern of multinational drugmakers turning to Chinese biotechs for pipeline replenishment. Photo: Shutterstock
The latest transactions reflect a broader pattern of multinational drugmakers turning to Chinese biotechs for pipeline replenishment. Photo: Shutterstock
Banking & finance

Global firms turn to M&A in EVs and biotech to deepen China investment: KPMG

Survey of multinational corporations finds optimism in life sciences, healthcare and manufacturing, with half forecasting revenue growth.

United States

Are Chinese biotechs what the doctor ordered as Big Pharma faces ‘patent cliff’?

US drug makers are racing to plug looming ‘patent cliff’ revenue gaps – and increasingly they are turning to China biotechs.

China’s private sector

BeOne Medicines names R&D chief Wang Lai as president amid global expansion

BeOne generated global revenue of about US$3.8 billion last year, driven by its flagship products Brukinsa and Tevimbra.

BeOne’s manufacturing facility in Guangzhou. Photo: Handout
Medicine

Sanofi signs with Hong Kong biotech firm Insilico to spur AI drug discovery

French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi will collaborate with Hong Kong-based biotech firm Insilico Medicine in a deal worth up to US$1.2 billion to speed up the drug-discovery process using artificial intelligence.

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The Sanofi headquarters in Lyon, France. Photo: Reuters
The Sanofi headquarters in Lyon, France. Photo: Reuters
Medicine

Exclusive | Hong Kong’s Insilico, Aramco to partner on sustainable fuels and materials

AI drug discovery unicorn Insilico Medicine is set to sign a deal with Saudi Arabia’s Aramco and a subsidiary during Hong Kong leader John Lee Ka-chiu’s official visit to the country.

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Made in China 2025

China’s pharmaceutical industry transforms into a global innovation powerhouse

The China Pharmaceutical Innovation and Invention Index, a new gauge, highlights top drug makers on the mainland for the first time.

Made in China 2025

China’s new drug insurance: lifeline for patients or squeeze on big firms?

New insurance formulary trims costs of Alzheimer’s and cancer therapies and marks a small win for global novel drug makers.

The commercial insurance formulary covers some medicines that are not yet eligible for reimbursement under the country’s National Reimbursement Drug List. Photo: Shutterstock
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