Chi-Med opted to raise modest funds in the US to extend its cash runway ahead of a ‘big year’ but still intends to pursue a larger Hong Kong listing at an appropriate time, its CEO tells Scrip.

2019 will be remembered as a banner year for international drug makers as many grew at phenomenal rates in China, despite expansion of the “4+7” centralized procurement scheme and steep price cuts in exchange for reimbursement. As the government continues to emphasize affordability for cancer drugs and major anti-infectives, competition is heating up quickly and immune-oncology alone has seen six PD-1s elbowing each other for market share.

Touting its coronavirus vaccines as a "global public good", China is quietly preparing for the first general approvals and launches, possibly within weeks, developers say. But who will be first in line to receive them? And at what cost? Distribution and pricing are just some of the unanswered questions.