The leaders of 12 multinational healthcare giants gather in China to continue investing in these fields

Why are multinational healthcare giants collectively increasing their investments in China?

On the evening of March 21, the list of key foreign representatives for the 2026 China Development High-Level Forum Annual Conference was announced, including executives from 12 multinational healthcare companies, such as Severin Schwan, Chairman of the Board of Roche Group; Albert Bourla, Chairman and CEO of Pfizer; Pascal Soriot, CEO of AstraZeneca Global; Vasant Narasimhan, CEO of Novartis; David A. Ricks, Chairman and CEO of Eli Lilly; Robert Ford, Chairman and CEO of Abbott; Marc Casper, Chairman and CEO of Thermo Fisher Scientific; Geoff Martha, Global Chairman and CEO of Medtronic; Bernd Montag, CEO of Siemens Healthineers; Hubertus von Baumbach, Chairman of the Shareholders’ Committee of Boehringer Ingelheim; Joseph Morrissey, Acting CEO of Oglon; and Dave J. Rosa, CEO of Intuitive Surgical.

Severin Schwan, Chairman of the Board of Roche, and other leaders of multinational pharmaceutical companies and associations, stated that China has achieved significant progress in health and wellness, providing broad development opportunities for multinational companies. They plan to further expand investments and business layouts, deepening cooperation in new drug R&D, clinical trials, digital health, and other fields.

In recent years, multinational pharmaceutical companies have been deepening their localized supply chains in China. Just this week, AstraZeneca announced two major investments in Shanghai and Guangzhou, including building a cell therapy production and supply base in Shanghai and a radioactive conjugate drug production and supply base in Guangzhou. AstraZeneca said that the synergy between the two bases will further enhance its local manufacturing capacity for new drugs and therapies, becoming a key pillar in its ongoing expansion of a diversified global supply network.

Last week, Eli Lilly also announced a plan to invest a total of $3 billion in China over the next decade. This will expand the company’s supply chain capacity in China, establishing local production and supply systems for oral solid formulations, and preparing for the future market launch of oral small-molecule GLP-1 receptor agonists.

The ongoing booming demand for weight-loss drugs in China is also the next major market for multinational healthcare companies. On March 21, Eli Lilly China released a study on the economic burden of overweight and obesity, showing that China’s annual economic burden due to overweight and obesity has reached 1 trillion RMB. Eli Lilly CEO David Ricks stated that improving access to effective treatments and accelerating the development of obesity management systems could help alleviate the long-term chronic disease management pressure faced by society.

This month, Pfizer’s GLP-1 receptor agonist, Enooglutide injection, which was licensed from Chinese biopharmaceutical company Xianforada, received official approval from the National Medical Products Administration in China. This move signifies Pfizer’s official entry into the Chinese weight-loss drug market.

Meanwhile, as several blockbuster drugs from multinational pharmaceutical companies are approaching patent expiration, these companies are also looking to acquire innovative drugs from China to strengthen their R&D pipelines. “China’s early-stage R&D now has global competitiveness,” wrote a report by UBS Healthcare Analysts.

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla has repeatedly called for cooperation between the U.S. and Chinese pharmaceutical industries. He stated that China, with its rapid R&D processes, has captured about 30% of the global drug development market over the past decade. “In biopharmaceuticals, China’s astonishing speed, cost advantages, and scale effects have changed the global competitive landscape,” Bourla said. He also mentioned that Chinese biopharmaceutical companies recruit clinical trial patients at two to five times the rate of American companies.

(Article from First Financial)