Quietly but unambiguously, pharma firms are accelerating their diversification away from China and are now looking to other emerging markets for growth, a strategy that reflects increasing pressures from China's volume-based procurement scheme but also US-China tensions and other geopolitical risks.

Restructuring Edition: Even big pharma companies are not immune from workforce reductions. BMS and Sanofi joined that ranks of Evotec, CureVac and BenevolentAI in cutting jobs. Also, Vaxxinity will de-list and Hepion winds down its NASH trial, among other strategic updates.

Collaboration Edition: Including deals involving Evotec/Variant, Sanofi/IGM/Nurix, ABVC/OncoX and Harmony/Bioprojet, along with tech transfer agreements and deals in brief.

Japan now allows pseudonymized personal data for medical use under a licensing system for wider use of real-world data. Meanwhile, a national cost-effectiveness assessment scheme has slashed reimbursement prices for Lagevrio and Kerendia, and Alexion’s Voydeya has been added to the reimbursement tariff.