Shanghai biopharmaceutical industry exceeds 900 billion yuan

Shanghai’s biopharmaceutical industry size has exceeded 900 billion yuan (US$124 billion), it was revealed at the 2024 Shanghai International Forum on Biotechnology & Pharmaceutical Industry.

The industry reached over a scale of 933.7 billion yuan in 2023, up 4.9 percent from a year ago, according to Luo Dajin, director of the Shanghai Science and Technology Commission.

Of the top 20 global pharmaceutical enterprises, 18 have placed their Chinese R&D centers or production headquarters in Shanghai, he added.

Xu Lai, director of the Shanghai Drug Administration, told the forum that the city had secured approval for 24 domestically-produced innovative drugs to enter the market since 2019.

Notably, two of the six US-approved Chinese-developed innovative drugs came from Shanghai, and three of the five cell therapies in China came from Shanghai, she added.

She said Shanghai’s competitiveness in terms of R&D of innovative drugs was increasing in the global market, and some of the international enterprises had picked China for global debuts of their new products.

The biopharmaceutical industry is one of the three pioneering industries in Shanghai. The city will step up efforts to accelerate the technology transfer, and promote deeper international cooperation, Luo said.

This year’s forum, from May 21 to 23, attracted more than 200 experts, scientists and entrepreneurs discussing topics such as vaccines, cell therapies, and human genetic resources.

Jiang Xiaowei / SHINE