SAN FRANCISCO – At what BIO CEO and President Jim Greenwood called a "Dickensian moment in the history of biotechnology – arguably the best of times and the worst of times" for U.S. industry players, new rules piloted by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. (CFIUS) have made things even more challenging.

HONG KONG – Hutchison China Meditech Ltd.'s (Chi-Med) is preparing for the next step after surufatinib achieved its primary endpoint in a phase III SANET-ep study in extra-pancreatic advanced neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) in China.

SUZHOU, China – Under the "Healthy China" campaign, China has introduced a three-year action plan for preventing and treating cancer. The plan vows to speed up the marketing of cancer drugs in the country, even aiming for simultaneous marketing with other countries.

SUZHOU, China, and HONG KONG – Despite investor worries over the long-term political and economic stability of Hong Kong after almost four months of social unrest and frequent violent protests, Chinese biotech executives remain optimistic about the outlook for the prospects for the market.

SUZHOU, China – A recent revision to China's legal infrastructure for the pharma industry represents a concrete step toward bolstering domestic biotech innovation, said stakeholders gathered at last weekend's China Biomed Innovation and Investment Conference.

SUZHOU, China – The Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) chief proposed to unleash China's rich data resources to advance big health care, after he steered a groundbreaking move last year to welcome pre-revenue biotech companies, a move that has become a hot topic for the industry at home and abroad.

SUZHOU, China – The rare disease space continues to be an area of focus for across the sector worldwide, and China is no exception, with regulators rolling out long-awaited incentives and drugmakers viewing the field as a promising area to drive growth.

Shanghai-based Micurx Pharmaceuticals Inc. is preparing to file an NDA for its lead antibacterial candidate, contezolid, with China's National Medical Products Administration after results of a pivotal phase III trial there showed the drug providing comparable clinical cure rates to linezolid for complicated skin and soft tissue infections (cSSTI). Reduced hematologic toxicity for the tablet-based antibiotic vs. linezolid was also seen, highlighting one of contezolid's key advantages.

SUZHOU, China – The global biotech market continues to look promising and Chinese companies are taking notice as they lay the foundation for new advances.